Nanette Claire (Dore') Babin

Nanette Claire (Doré) Babin was born on February 5, 1952, to Willis and Ulana Doré in Port Arthur, Texas. She attended St. Catherine of Siena Roman Catholic School and Bishop Byrne High School in Port Arthur, ultimately graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School in Port Arthur. Nanette grew up attending St. Catherine of Siena Roman Catholic Church and spent much of her childhood in a house on Woodrow Avenue, a short walk from St. Catherine’s. After high school, Nanette went on to study at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, graduating in 1973 with a Bachelor’s degree of Business Administration in Office Administration. Nanette also earned a Texas Teacher’s Certificate. As a business major, Nanette learned classic secretarial skills, now unheard of in our technological age, such as typing and shorthand dictation. In 1977, she married Gary Babin at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in Port Arthur. Her first job after college was a secretarial position in the lab at DuPont Beaumont Works, where she worked until her first son, Kyle, was born in 1980.

In the first years of their marriage, Nanette and Gary lived in Bridge City, where Gary worked in the public schools as a teacher and coach. A second son, Jeremy, was born in 1982, and shortly thereafter, the family moved to Groves. Some years later, Nanette began work as a substitute teacher in the Port Neches-Groves Independent School District, and later she served as a secretary for the Alternative Education Center in that same school district.

In Groves, Nanette and Gary lived next door to Nanette’s parents, Willis and Ulana. Nanette enjoyed visiting with her parents and other local friends, sharing a cup of coffee in the afternoon. No visit was complete without a cup of coffee! In 2008, Nanette and Gary moved to Bandera, Texas, and then in 2009, moved to San Antonio to be near Jeremy and his family. Nanette and Gary eventually moved back to the southeast Texas area, settling in Orange, where they lived from 2016 until 2024, when they moved to San Antonio again. Nanette was a lifelong Roman Catholic, and her deep faith was a central part of her life. She prayed the rosary daily and attended Mass weekly. At the time of her death, she was a member of St. Anthony Mary Claret Roman Catholic Church in San Antonio.

In 2023, Nanette was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and she valiantly persevered in the face of many health challenges for the last twenty years of her life. She died peacefully in the early morning hours of January 25, 2026, just hours after receiving last rites and the loving goodbyes of her family. Nanette was a gifted homemaker and cook. Her house was always spotless, so spotless that her family always joked that one could eat off the floor! She was superbly organized, and in her presence, there was never a shortage of food. She loved to feed people from the abundant stores within her pantry. But perhaps her greatest gift was caring for others. She always put others before herself. Her beautiful smile brightened any room. Even in her final days, her caregivers at Grand Brook Memory Care noted her special kindness and gentleness. She was deeply proud of her family and children, Jeremy and Kyle. She is survived by her loving and devoted husband of 48 years, Gary, her sons, Jeremy (Holly) and Kyle (Robert), three grandchildren, Brynn, Colt, and Holden, as well as her siblings, Marianne, Matt, and Monica.

Visitation will take place from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at St. Catherine of Siena Roman Catholic Church, 3706 Woodrow Drive, Port Arthur, Texas. A rosary will be recited at 10:30 a.m., and a Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. The Rite of Committal will be at Memory Gardens Cemetery, Nederland, Texas, with a reception following at the Fellowship Hall of the First United Methodist Church in Groves, Texas, 6501 Washington Street. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Nanette may be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation (https://www.parkinson.org/).