Isaac Musselwhite

Isaac Campbell Musselwhite, of Guanajuato, Mexico, died on March 23, 2020, in Gulfport, MS. He was born on October 14, 1934, on his grandfather’s farm in the community of Possumneck, MS, located three miles east of West.

Mr. Musselwhite was predeceased by his beloved mother, Annie Campbell Musselwhite; his father, George C. Musselwhite; his brother, Lacy F. Musselwhite; his grandparents, Sidney and Pearl Cade Campbell and Isaac and Ola Miller Musselwhite; and his cats Victoria, Miss Gray, Diego, and Frida Kahlo.

He is survived by his sister-in-law, Marilyn McLeod Musselwhite, of Brandon, MS; cousins, Drs. Jane and Matthew Varner, their children Ava Grace and Joseph, and Mernagh and Jimmy Howze, all of Gulfport, MS; cousins, Dianne Wright and Benjamin Wright, of Durham, NC; soulmates, Charlotte O. Jenkins, of Atlanta, GA, and Margaret Wilkes, of Gulfport, MS; his protege Raymundo Roca Duran, of the University of Guanajuato Ballet Folklorico; and the three surviving members of the Four Musketeers of Guanajuato - John and Nancy Eudy, former Mississippians of Ackerman and Laurel, respectively and now of exotic Tomball, TX, and Raymond Levesque, of Quebec, Guanajuato, and Mexico City; his approximately five thousand former students; extended family; numerous friends; and his cat Billy Gustavo.

Mr. Musselwhite was educated at Millsaps College, Mississippi State University, George Peabody College, and the National University of Mexico. Other sources of life’s enrichment were his second grade teacher Miss Annie Alexander, of West, MS, reading, traveling, and international living.

Mr. Musselwhite was a faculty member of the Natchez, MS, public schools from 1955 until 1965 and on the faculty of Archbishop Rummel High School in Metairie, LA, from 1965 until his retirement in 1999. He was a member of Kappa Sigma Fraternity and a supporter of the Human Rights Commission, PETA, and Los Amigos de Animales of Guanajuato. He was named to Who's Who in Secondary Education in America, received the Distinguished Service Award for 1964 from the Natchez Chamber of Commerce, received the 1984 Honorary Diploma from the Alumni Association of Archbishop Rummel High School, and was named the Archbishop Rummel High School Raider Legend for 2018.

At his request, no formal service will be held. Mr. Musselwhite’s wish is for his cremains to rest on the grounds of Chichén Itzá, heart of the Maya culture. Before his death, he donated to the Amigos de Animales and to a scholarship fund for Mexican children. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to a scholarship fund at Archbishop Rummel High School, 1901 Severn Avenue, Metairie, LA 70001.