Ector Co. TX - Obituaries from the Odessa American Online Submitted by Sonny Hall shall@balista.com Thanks to the Odessa American Online http://www.oaoa.com/ ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ *********************************************************************** OA Online Obituaries. Permian Basin Obituaries Copyright © 1999-2002 Odessa American. All rights reserved =========================================================================== Wednesday August 28, 2002 Frankie Fernandes Dennison ODESSA - Frankie Fernandes Dennison, age 89, of Odessa died Monday, Aug. 26, 2002, at Medical Center Hospital. She was born September 22, 1912, in Midland to John F. and Dora Fernandes. Funeral Services will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, 2002, at First Baptist Church with Revs. Melvin Warren and Johnny Young officiating. Interment will be at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Mrs. Dennison moved to Odessa in 1926. She married M. Clarence Dennison in Odessa in 1935. She attended Baylor Business College; she was secretary at Pritchard & Abbott for 27 years before retirement. She was also a member of First Baptist Church. Frankie will be remembered as a loving, loyal wife and mother with a very generous nature who was always thinking of others. She is survived by son; John C. Dennison and wife, Donna of San Antonio; a sister, Ruth Fernandes of Lubbock; brothers, J.W. Fernandes and wife Margarie and Doug Fernandes and wife Emily, all of Pecos, and Larry L. Fernandes and wife Mary Lynn of Winkler County; grandson, John Edward "Jed" Dennison of Missoula, Mont., Timothy Dennison and wife Sarah of New York City, N.Y., and Matthew Dennison and wife Elizabeth of San Francisco, Calif.; step-granddaughter, Sabra Sweeny and husband Bob of Austin; step-grandson, Scott Newell III and wife Intira of El Paso; one great-grandson; and numerous nieces and nephews. Pallbearers will be John E. (Jed) Dennison, Timothy Dennison, Matthew Dennison, Will Fernandes, Ed Fernandes and Frank Fernandes. Arrangements entrusted to Frank W. Wilson Funeral Directors. Madge Richerson Moore ODESSA - Funeral services for Madge Richerson Moore, age 93, of Odessa, are scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, 2002, at Sherwood Church of Christ with Lynn Money officiating. Interment will be at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Mrs. Moore passed away Monday, Aug. 26, 2002, at Medical Center Hospital in Odessa. She was born Jan. 31, 1909, in Wellington, Texas, to Silas Carter Richerson and Nettie Ring Richerson. She married Owen Lee Moore on May 19, 1940, in Borger, Texas. They lived in Pampa before moving to Odessa in 1957. Mr. Moore preceded her death. Mrs. Moore was a schoolteacher and taught the fifth grade in Pampa before moving to Odessa where she then taught in the Ector County ISD, retiring from Dowling Elementary after 43 years. After retiring she taught at Odessa Christian School, joined the China Painting Club in Odessa, and played the piano, and Canasta at the Senior Citizen Center. She was an active member of the Sherwood Church of Christ. She was preceded in death by her mother and father; sisters, Abigail Richerson and Ruth Richerson; brothers, Wood Lee Richerson and Homer Si "Fuzz" Richerson; and son, Gerald "Jerry" Wayne Moore. Survivors include her daughter, Donna Thomas of Odessa; brother, Glenn Richerson of Shamrock; sisters, Jeanne Richerson and Loyd Jeannette Richerson, both of Odessa; grandchildren, Melissa Wilkins, Mike Thomas, Tonya Sue Camp, and Linda Lee Moore; and great-grandchildren Matthew Stanley Wilkins and Lauren Alyssa Wilkins. The family suggests memorials be sent to Odessa Christian School. Arrangements entrusted to Sunset Memorial Gardens and Funeral Home. Edwin Walter Schmidt ODESSA - Edwin Walter Schmidt, M.D., of Odessa died Monday evening, Aug. 26, 2002, of complications following surgery. The fourth of six children, he was born in Malone, Texas, on Aug. 31, 1915, to Paul and Olga Schmidt. "Smitty," his nickname earned as a 12-year-old boy while shining shoes at the local barbershop; or "Doc," as he was fondly called by his friends and family, lived an extraordinary life in his 87 years on this earth. He began his education in Malone and graduated from Malone High School in 1933. For his first entrepreneur endeavor, Smitty operated his own cleaning service that employed several others in Malone. He then moved to Waco where he earned his BA degree from Baylor University in 1940. After beginning medical school at the University of Tennessee, Doc was commissioned into the U.S. Air Force Medical Corp. in 1943 and, two years later, completed his MD. Following an externship at St. Joseph Hospital in Memphis and an internship at Toledo Hospital in Toledo, Ohio, he graduated from the School of Aviation Medicine at Randolph Field in 1946. It was here that he developed his love and passion for flying. Like many men and women during the time, he joined the ranks of those who served their country during WWII. With that, he began his medical practice as the Chief of Industrial Medical Services at Kelly AFB and then was deployed to Okinawa, Japan, in 1948 as the Commanding Officer of the Station Medical Group. Doc set up his private practice in Pecos, Texas, after his honorable discharge in 1948. While in Pecos, Doc began his active service to the community not only as a physician, but also as a civic leader. He served as Mayor of Pecos from 1964 to 1974. He was active in Rotary International and was elected District Governor in 1962. He also served as Chairman of the Board of Pecos Saving and Loan from 1960 to 1980. He was President of the Chamber of Commerce in 1976 and he proudly accepted Pecos’ Citizen of the Year Award in 1985. Doc was also active in the medical community and held many positions with the Texas Medical Association and the American Medical Association. Highlights among those were his terms of Vice-President and President of the TMA in 1971 and 1974, respectively. He also had board positions with the TMA and AMA including the Rural Medical Education Board, the Medical Liability Trust and the National Medical Veterans. He worked tirelessly for better health care in the rural areas of Texas. He was a charter member of the Flying Physicians’ Association. He also formalized his flying skills, while in Pecos, by earning his pilot’s license in a Tri-Pacer, the first of his airplanes. He logged approximately 5,000 hours in over 50 years of flying. He was a charter member of the Flying Physicians’ Association and was the Senior Aviation Medical examiner from 1953 to 2000. After 31 years of practicing medicine and delivering as many babies as hours he logged, Doc retired to his home in Creede, Colo., a home he and his beloved wife, Mary, literally built stone by stone, board by board, nail by nail with their own hands. Retirement did not last long, however, and he found himself in charge of the county medical clinic from 1981 to 1986. The harsh winters and a yearning to be back in Texas lured Doc to Odessa to start another chapter of his life. Of course, he continued to practice medicine at a reduced schedule, leaving him some time to devote to travel and flying. He and Mary traveled all over the world and he, too, set foot on every continent on the earth. His love of flying and history led him to join the Odessa CAF and the Desert Squadron where he served a term as the squadron leader and worked with others to construct the Squadron facility. He was also a member of the Medical Detachment for the numerous air shows. He spent many pleasurable hours at the airport restoring a medical supply Jeep named "Esther" and just reminiscing and swapping "fly-boy" stories. Doc was a true modern "Renaissance man." There was nothing he could not accomplish. He became an expert at many things - flying, photography, carpentry and fishing, just to name a few. He was a prolific reader of all literature, particularly the Classics. His memory was extraordinary. He could quote complete works of poetry. He enjoyed working the New York Times crossword puzzles in ink and particularly looked forward to the Sunday puzzle. A product of the Greatest Generation, he had a strong will to live life to the utmost each and every day. He was energetic and tireless. He generously gave of himself and of his time. Survivors include his daughter, Joanne Schmidt of Albuquerque; son, Shane Schmidt and wife Carol of Houston; grandchildren, Stephanie and Eric of Houston; sisters, Lillie Alma and Louise King of Malone; brother, A.W. "Shady" Schmidt of Brenham; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Verna Marie; and more recently by his second wife, Mary Ruth. Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, 2002, at First Presbyterian Church, 1401 N. Sam Houston. Interment will follow at Sunset Memorial Gardens. Arrangements by Frank W. Wilson Funeral directors. If desired, memorials may be made to the CAF or the First Presbyterian Church. Standlee D. Smoot AUSTIN - Standlee D. Smoot of Austin died peacefully in his sleep Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2002. He was born Sept. 28, 1927, in Comanche, Texas, to Donovan and Wilhemina Carpenter Smoot. Standlee served his country in World War II, in both the United States Navy and the United States Coast Guard. He then spent 37 years with Halliburton Oil Field Services, of which 25 years were spent traveling and working overseas. Standlee was admired, respected and loved by all who knew him. He was a self-made man, starting out on his own at age 13. He loved his family, his work, a good story and life in general. He will be remembered for his gentle strength and welcoming smile. Standlee is survived by his wife of 37 years, Pilar Smoot; his three sons, David, Justan and James and wife Michelle; sisters, Ann Butler and husband Ben and Donna Martin and husband Craig; brother, Graham W. Smoot and wife, Judy; five grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. Memorial services will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, 2002, in the Colonial Chapel of Cook-Walden Funeral Home. For those desiring, memorial contributions may be made in Standlee’s name to Meals on Wheels, P.O. Box 6248, Austin, TX, 78762. Arrangements under the direction of Cook-Walden Funeral Home, 6100 N. Lamar Blvd., Austin, TX, 78752, (512) 454-5611. Copyright © 1999-2002 Odessa American. All rights reserved.