Dr. Yenni Lillia Michel

Dr. Yenni Lillia Michel, D.O., passed away very unexpectedly at her home near Mexia on Wednesday, November 30, 2016, at age 51. Funeral services will be held Saturday, December 3, 2016, in the All Faith Chapel located at the Mexia State Supported Living Center (515 Chapel Drive) in Mexia. Visitation and viewing will begin at 1:00 before the services begin at 2:30 P.M. in the Chapel. Chaplain Karen Hulsey will officiate. Dr. Michel’s wishes for cremation will be carried out following the funeral services, including her wishes for her remains to be carried to Lake Travis at Austin, where she had enjoyed boating and other water activities during vacations all her life. Yenni was born June 21, 1965 to Eng. Sergio E. Avila and Teresa Michel in Chihuahua, Chihuaha Mexico. Her father’s job as an engineer brought the family to El Paso when she was one year old. She graduated from Mandeville High School in Louisiana in 1983, having been very active in sports, including track and volleyball. She served as team captain on the State Championship volleyball team, and graduated with honors. She joined the U. S. Air Force and was a medical specialist. After the Air Force, she attended Texas A & M University in PreMed, and received her Doctor of Osteopathy degree from the University of Texas at North Dallas. She served her residence at the Christus Spohn Hospital in Corpus Christi. Family practice was her speciality. Dr. Yenni had worked at the Mexia State Supported Living Center for five years. She enjoyed working with the patients and staff there, telling her family that she loved taking care of those needing her medical care and their appreciation for her services. Yenni was a shy but adventurous person all her life, from backpacking in Europe as a young person just out of school, to many vacations in Alaska, Canada, and all over the country with friends. Horseback riding was a favorite activity, and she enjoyed boating and other water activities, especially at Lake Travis in Austin. Dr. Michel was preceded in death by her father, Eng. Sergio Avila in 2003 and by her step-faher, William Milton McCormick. She is survived by her mother, Teresa Michel of Mexia; her sister, Ivonne Michel of Mexia; her brother, Sergio E. Michel of Johnson City; nephews and niece, Jason Lumpkin, Jeremy Lumpkin, and Jessica Goodwin, all of Austin; aunt and uncles, Mary and Ronnie Ball of El Paso and Arturo Michel of El Paso; and many other extended family.