Martha Lavinia Crittenden Haltom

Martha Lavinia Crittenden Haltom passed away Monday, July 29, 2024, 10 days shy of her 101st birthday.

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, August 3rd, 2024, at First Presbyterian Church of Waco, with Rev. Dr. Leslie King officiating. Interment will follow at Oakwood Cemetery.

Lavinia was born August 8th, 1923, in Galveston, Texas, to George Mozea and Christine Middleton Crittenden. Christine was a direct descendant of Arthur Middleton, who signed the United States Declaration of Independence. She moved that same year to Houston where she later attended San Jacinto High School and the Second Presbyterian Church. She graduated from The University of Texas at Austin and was a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority. She was married to Edward Philmore Haltom, Sr. from 1948 until his death in 1982. They had one son, Edward Philmore Haltom, Jr. (Phil). Phil married Debbie Brown and they had one son, Edward Philmore Haltom, III (Casey), before Phil's death in 1985.

While living in Houston, Lavinia served in the Cerebral Palsy Treatment Center and was a charter member of the Latin American Children’s Center there. Lavinia moved to Waco in 1960 and attended First Presbyterian Church where she was a faithful and active member. She served as Director of the Vacation Bible School for three terms and was the President of the Women of the Church, of which she was a life member, and served on the regional Presbytery several terms. She went on to become the first woman deacon of the church. Her dedication and service to the church was preceded by 300 years of Presbyterian heritage.

Lavinia was a devoted member of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (DRT). As a member of the organization, from 1962 until her death, she served for 40 years in different positions, including First Vice President General, Second Vice President General, Registrar General, President of the Sterling C. Robertson Chapter, and Organization Committee Chairman. She made it her life's work to preserve the Alamo and was an integral part of insuring that the DRT remained the custodian of the Alamo and its history for many decades, before that role was assumed by the State of Texas in 2011.

In addition to the Presbyterian Church and the DRT, Lavinia was involved in many other organizations in her lifetime. She was active in Panhellenic, having served on the board several times. She was a member of the then named Waco Historical Foundation; Waco-McLennan County Library Association, local history division; Texas State Genealogical Society; McLennan County Genealogical Society; Central Texas Area Museum Board, and a Trustee of the Salado College Foundation. She also served on the YMCA Board as chairman of the membership drive, participated in the March of Dimes drive several times, and served on different PTA boards.

Lavinia loved to travel. In addition to visiting virtually every county in Texas and many US states, she traveled the world for decades with a group of friends, visiting and revisiting many destinations in most of the European nations as well as countries on the African and Asian continents. These trips included touring the Grand Canyon on horseback, riding in a hot air balloon and going on safari.

Lavinia was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her brother, Henry Crittenden, and his wife, Mary Jane Tully Crittenden; her brother, George Wright Crittenden; and her son, Phil Haltom, Jr.

She is survived by her daughter-in-law, Debbie Brown Haltom Christensen of Waco; niece, Carol Mae Crittenden of Dallas; grandson, Casey of West Hollywood, CA; and Carol Cobb of Waco, who lovingly cared for Lavinia daily for over 13 years.

The family would like to thank the staff at Lynridge of Waco Assisted Living and Memory Care as well as Suzanne Kelly for her unending support.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Lavinia’s honor to First Presbyterian Church of Waco.

We invite you to leave a message or memory of Lavinia on her “Tribute Wall” at www.WHBfamily.com.