Henrietta Charlotte (Fritz) Smith, 96, died Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016. A resident of Greenville, Texas, for more than 65 years, she was a retired teacher and vocational guidance counselor in the Greenville Independent School District.
Funeral services will be in the Coker-Mathews Funeral Home Chapel on Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 10 A.M., with Rev. Ron Holmes officiating. Burial will be in Memoryland Memorial Park. Visitation will be Friday, November 18, 2016 from 6 P.M. to 8 P.M. at the funeral home.
She enjoyed working with the high school students, particularly those with personal challenges, as they progressed through school and into technical or trade schools. She firmly believed that not all students need to attend college, although learning is a lifelong experience for everyone. To that end, she helped start the vocational education program at the high school, opening career paths for students when they graduated from high school. Following her retirement, especially in her later years, former students reminisced with her during chance encounters.
She followed politics on all levels and occasionally wrote letters to local and state politicians expressing her views.
Mrs. Smith was actively involved in the Presbyterian church and was a member of Grace Presbyterian Church before Grace and First Presbyterian churches combined to form United Presbyterian Church. She was a Sunday school teacher, served as a church elder, sat on many of the church committees and attended Presbytery and Synod, the regional and national governing bodies of the Presbyterian church, representing her local church. She also was a member of United Presbyterian Women and the church Circle Bible study. She stayed interested in church activities throughout her life.
A lifetime member of the Texas Retired Teachers Association, she served in several offices for the local chapter, including president and vice president; and she was a member of the Texas State Teachers Association for many years, serving in various offices at the local level. She also served as a delegate from the local chapter of the TSTA to state meetings. She began her teaching career at Bowie Elementary School after earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Texas A&M University-Commerce.
Always active in the community, Mrs. Smith joined several community groups, such as the Herb Society and AAUW; served as president of the Altrusa Club; and led Girls Scouts, Boy Scouts, band and athletic activities and other groups as her children grew up. She supported the Audie Murphy Cotton Museum in Greenville and Masonic activities.
Mrs. Smith and her twin sister, Nina Lee Klein, were born in St. Louis, MO, on February 14, 1920, to Nina Lee and Harry Roland Fritz, who became the vice president of the Hereford bank. The family lived in Plainview and Hereford where the girls grew up. When the girls were 16, their father died, and the family returned to St. Louis, where they graduated from Roosevelt High School. Her parents and sister preceded Mrs. Smith in death.
Mrs. Smith attended secretarial school while working as a bookkeeper to help support her family after her high school graduation, and early in World War II, she met her future husband, Wilson M. Smith, in St. Louis. They married on December 5, 1942, in St. Louis. After the war, they settled in Nitro, WV, where Mr. Smith was the manager of a hardware store. Later, they built and sold houses.
The family moved to Greenville in 1951 when Mr. Smith started his contracting business installing water and sewer lines. He died in 1968. They had three children.
Survivors include her children: Charlotte L. Wright, and her husband Carroll Wright of New Braunfels; Marsha A. Smith of Pahrump, Nevada; and Edward M. Smith, and his wife Alicia Smith of Fairfield; grandchildren Stacey Wright of Niskayuna, NY; Christopher Wright of Pittsburgh, PA; Angela and Lloyd Pinkerton of Godley; Christi Smith of Austin; two great-grandchildren, Klara and Kolton Pinkerton; and niece Barbara Klein of Garland.
Pallbearers will be grandchildren Stacey Wright, Angie Pinkerton, Christi Smith and Lloyd Pinkerton. Honorary pallbearers will be Christopher Wright and Carroll Wright. Interment will follow at Memoryland Memorial Park in Greenville.
Memorial donations may be made to the Greenville Masons, AF&AM Lodge 335, or to the Audie Murphy Cotton Museum.