Viola Sunderland

Viola was born on November 21, 1933, in Mission, Texas, to Eliseo Guerra and Crisanta Barrera Guerra. The tenth of eleven children, she grew up in Mission and graduated with honors in 1952 from Valley Grande Academy in Weslaco, Texas. She later attended Southwestern Union College in Keene, Texas. In her early years, she helped with her mother's home bakery and worked as a dental and medical assistant.

On July 24, 1955, she married Harry P. Sunderland, Sr. Together they owned and operated Sunderland's Cactus Gardens in Alamo, Texas, for 45 years. Viola designed beautiful dish gardens and managed the nursery's retail shop, sharing her creativity and gift for detail. Her knowledge and keen eye led to the identification of a previously unclassified cactus later named in her honor, Coryphantha sunderlandii.

Viola loved nature, pets, Scrabble, and cooking for those she loved. Her Mexican food and homemade flour tortillas were especially treasured. She and Harry raised five children, modeling hard work, generosity, and deep faith. A devoted member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, she served as a deaconess and children's teacher and continued enjoying sermons and Christian music even when she could no longer attend in person.

After being widowed in 2010, Viola later moved to Florida to be near family and spent her final nine years at Orlando Health Central Park. She was known for "zipping around" in her motorized chair, playing games, coloring detailed pictures, and warmly conversing in Spanish with caregivers. Even near the end of her life, she could recite Bible verses and beloved hymns from memory.

Viola passed to her rest on February 22, 2026, in Winter Garden, Florida. She was preceded in death by her parents, nine siblings, her husband Harry Sr., and her son Benjamin. She is survived by four children-Harry Jr. (Connie), Sue (Melvin Sauder), Ted, and Rita (Capt. Shawn Roberts)-as well as eleven grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, one brother, and many nieces and nephews.

She will be laid to rest beside her husband at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens in Edinburg, Texas, awaiting the blessed hope of the resurrection. A celebration of her life is planned in San Antonio, Texas, with details forthcoming.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Three Angels' Broadcasting Network (3ABN.org), Adventist World Radio (AWR.org), or a gospel ministry of choice.