Devoted lifelong counselor-educator, beloved aunt, neighbor and friend, Dr. Laurabeth Henderson Hicks, PhD walked into the loving arms of her Lord on October 10, 2019 after a brief convalescence. Born nearly 100 years ago, on March 31, 1920 in Galveston, Texas and raised in Las Cruces, New Mexico, Dr. Hicks graduated from Prairie View A&M University and the University of Minnesota prior to relocating to the Baton Rouge area and making her home in Baker, Louisiana for more than half her distinguished life. Dr. Hicks and her late husband of nearly 55 years, Dr. William R. "Bill" Hicks shared many outstanding accomplishments including co-founding the team that developed the Parkwood Terrace subdivision where they lived, teaching and retiring as administrative faculty of Southern University after earning doctorates at the University of Minnesota, among the first African American couples to do so. Dr. Hicks spent her early career as a school teacher in Port Arthur, Texas, later serving as Counselor for the Laboratory Schools at U of Minn. and Southern University, Baton Rouge where she was instrumental in establishing the Counseling Center. Dr. L. Hicks, a counseling psychologist, professor, researcher, talented pianist and gifted communicator, was a Federal government retiree who served 10 years as a United States Senior Executive in Washington, D. C., making significant contributions to her field of education. She was a member of Wesley United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge for 50 years, and a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. serving as Basileus of its Epsilon Theta Omega Chapter (President 1954-56; Port Arthur Texas). Dr. Hicks has published and presented numerous articles and studies and held local, regional, and national offices, serving as President of the Louisiana Counseling Association (1970s) and Convention Coordinator for the American Personnel and Guidance Association (APGA), organizing and chairing a national convention that brought thousands of participants to New Orleans in 1974. She was a staunch supporter of the DeBose Foundation and its National Piano Competition and was named one of its "Legacy Honorees" in 2019. "Laurabeth" was preceded in death by her mother, Willie M. Wesley Henderson Hooey, Romey A. Henderson I, II, and III (father, brother, and nephew), mentor and uncle the late Rev. I.B. Loud of Dallas, TX and her beloved husband and life partner Dr. "Bill" Hicks. She was a people person and her sharp memory, quick wit, musical laughter and independent spirit never waned. She will be greatly missed by her neighbors, friends, former students, in-home hospice support team from The Hospice of Baton Rouge and especially by her nieces and nephews, Vickie Casanova-Willis and husband Atty. Standish Willis, Rev. Keith G. Henderson and great-nephews and nieces, Ricardo II, Carlos and Reyna Casanova, Charis Goodman (Todd, Sr.), Iesha Tauscher (Daniel), Tumeka Williams (Sterling), and Letacha Keyes (Chris), Bill's nephews Rev. Tommy "Butchie" Cruse, Sr. and Robert Taylor, III, and great-nephews and nieces from the Cruse, Taylor and Goudeaux families, Christopher, Derrick, and Bryce Goudeaux, other relatives and friends. Dr. Hicks' services will be Sat. 10/26/19 at Wesley United Methodist Church, 544 Government St, Baton Rouge, LA. Visitation/Viewing from 9-11am. Funeral/Homegoing Celebration at 11am, followed by a repast. Burial on Mon. 10/28 at Port Hudson National Cemetery. Flowers, resolutions and condolences may be sent via Winnfield Funeral Home, 7221 Plank Rd., Baton Rouge, LA 70811 Email correspondence can be directed to [email protected] To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Dr. Laurabeth Hicks, PhD, please visit our floral store.