Cernosek

Born on July 15, 1932, to Frank and Amalie Machala, Amalie Martha “Molly” Cernosek, 91 years young, left this life on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2024, in Smithville and was reunited with her beloved husband, Richard, in the afterlife. After almost 68 years of marriage, the couple was separated on this earth by Richard’s death in 2020; what a reunion heaven has just witnessed!

Strong, recurring themes were evident throughout Molly’s life – and became even more pronounced once Molly and Richard’s lives merged. Molly and Richard were family and communityoriented, enterprising, industrious, and tenacious, and their own unique brand of gracious benevolence and integrity permeated all of their business and personal interactions, and we were all touched by her distinctive character. Elaine Thomas with the Fayette County Record wrote an article about the Cernoseks in 2020 that illustrated these themes well, and many of her anecdotes are included here because they portray Molly’s spirit so perfectly.

Molly was born on July 15, 1932, to Frank and Amalie (Korenek) Machala and was raised on a farm in Plum. Molly honed her strong work ethic on the family farm, where she and her siblings had daily chores that were not glamorous but essential to their way of life. By age 16, Molly was stirred to create a new adventure in life: she replied to an employment ad, and a lovely family from the tony River Oaks section of Houston hired her as a nanny, which Molly characterized as quite “uppity living” for a farm girl from Plum. The best kismet intervened on May 21, 1949, when both Molly and Richard attended a wedding dance in Houston, and the dye was cast! Molly and Richard returned to build a life in Fayette county, becoming “The Cernoseks” on July 12, 1952, at Plum’s Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.

Molly and Richard were the ultimate entrepreneurial team, and they were quite expert at identifying good opportunities. Their businesses ranged from gravel mining to milk hauling to the Mol-Ric Motel, a brainchild of Molly’s. The couple believed in quality and shrewd frugality, as they thought their customers deserved the former and the latter was called for in order to turn a profit, and the Mol-Ric was a case study of these tenets in action: the motel sported a smart-looking brick exterior, tile floors, butane heaters and a paved parking lot so their guests wouldn’t get stuck, and Molly set a reasonable and fair rate for the rooms and did all the cleaning herself. Land and property development proved to be the couple’s sweet spot, and it’s impossible to drive through the County and not see a property that Molly and Richard didn’t have a hand in turning into a Fayette County asset. Notably, Molly brought her bookkeeping skills to the family’s businesses, doing so until she retired from this duty in 2016.

Undoubtedly, what Molly and Richard would consider the greatest development of their life didn’t include land or property or a business: it was the adoption of their son, Chris, in 1961, and then their daughter, Carmen, in 1963. And Chris and Carmen returned the Cernosek brand of love, family and devotion to their extraordinary parents – from day one through the present. Carmen and Chris realized from an early age that their parents were characters… their parents didn’t leave milk and cookies for Santa but rather scotch and soda! Molly would have been happy meeting her maker either in the middle of a bridge game or on her lawnmower – Molly was quite the perfectionist when it came to her yard, and if she spotted a blade of grass out of line, it was on the mower to fix that imperfection, and she loved a mean game of cards.

In addition to their family and work, Molly passionately cared for her Fayette County and La Grange community and its residents, and she made the time to volunteer with the Fayette Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, the La Grange Associates of Seton Development Board, and the Second Chance Emporium. Importantly, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in La Grange was the family’s faith home, along with Queen of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Hostyn and Molly and Richard, both of Czechoslovakian ancestry, actively supported the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center since its inception in 1997.

Molly lived a life rich in the ways that matter – she possessed faith in God and a quick and enveloping humor; she developed beautiful relationships with family and friends; she reaped the rewards of hard work and shared those benefits through volunteerism and charity; sad she leaves behind an unforgettable and indelible mark on so many.

Surviving Molly are her children, Chris Cernosek and his wife, Lisa, of La Grange; Carmen Cernosek of Austin; granddaughter, Bailey Steinhauser and husband Matt of Forney, granddaughter, Chelsea Kmiec and husband Tate of Bellville, granddaughter, Carrie Binford of La Grange, grandson, Carson Binford of La Grange, granddaughter, Danielle Holzheuser of Bastrop, great-grandsons, Sloan Kmiec and Quinn Kmiec of Bellville, great-granddaughters, Rorie and Keely Kmiec of Bellville, one brother, Beno Machala and his wife Harriet of Plum, sister-in-law, Lillian Machala of Plum, brother-in-law, Edwin “Corner” Cernosek of Cedar Park, brother-in-law, Frank “Jack” Cernosek and wife Donella of La Grange, sister-in-law, Lillie Mae Tiedt and husband Weldon of Houston, sister-in-law, Rosalie Stevenson and husband Kenneth of La Grange, numerous nieces and nephews. She is also survived by special lifelong friends Debbie Menking Zigal and Doris Hild.

She is predeceased by and reunited with her parents and her other half, Richard Cernosek, brother, Frank Machala, brother, Edward Machala, sister, Celestine Ermis and brother-in-law, Leonard Ermis, sister-in-law, Georgia Mae Cernosek, sister-in-law, Francis “Fannie” Kana, and brother-in-law, John Kana, daughter-in-law, Angelique Cernosek and nephews and a niece.

Serving as pallbearers are: David Machala, Edward Machala, Timmy Machala, Patrick Machala, Matt Steinhauser, and Pete Hausmann.

Honorary pallbearers are: Carson Binford, Tate Kmiec, Daniel Wick, Jack Cernosek, Clint Hille, Mike Kulhanek, Sloan Kmiec, and Quinn Kmiec.

A visitation will be held on Friday, Feb. 2, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Koenig-Belvill Funeral Home in La Grange, with the family present to receive friends between 5 to 7 p.m. and a Holy Rosary service following from 7 to 7:30 p.m. The Mass of the Christian Burial will be on Saturday, Feb. 3, at 10 a.m. at Sacred Heart Church in La Grange, with burial to follow at Hostyn Catholic Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center or the Janssen Animal Shelter or Queen of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church, or Seton.

Family and friends can view and sign the guestbook online at www.lagrangefunerals. com.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Koenig-Belvill Funeral Home & Cremations in La Grange.