Mary Wilson Russell Mccall

Mary Wilson Russell McCall October 7, 1919 - November 13, 2014 At home and surrounded by her family, Mary Wilson Russell McCall went to be with her Lord on November 13, 2014, in Dallas Texas. The memorial service will be held at 2:00 pm, Tuesday, November 18, at the First Baptist Church of Waco, Texas, after a private family burial in Oakwood Cemetery in Waco. Visitation will be from 3 to 5 p.m., Monday, November 17, at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey. Mary was born on October 7, 1919, in Chillicothe, Texas, to Dora May and Quincy Wilson, graduated from Vernon High School and enrolled in Baylor University as a sixteen-year-old freshman. There she met and married Lloyd Russell, who became a Baylor faculty member. After four years of sea duty as a Naval Officer in World War II, Dr. Russell returned to Baylor as a department chair, where he remained until his death in 1968. During wartime, Mrs. Russell graduated from and taught at North Texas State University. After returning to Waco, she worked as a teacher and counselor in public schools, received her masters degree from Baylor and served the Baylor Roundtable as president and founding chairman of the Scholarship Committee. As a member of the First Baptist Church of Waco, she taught Sunday School, worked in missions, delivered Meals-on-Wheels, and served for years as a church trustee. On Christmas Day, 1970, Mary Russell married Dr. Abner V. McCall. Their twenty-five-year marriage was busy and fulfilling. As First Lady of Baylor, she was privileged to plan, design and supervise the building of the President's home. As chairman of the wives' organization of the Southern Association of Baptist Colleges and Universities, she enjoyed getting to know the other presidents and their wives. She was a charter member of The President's Club and the Endowed Scholarship Society. She served as co-president of The Heritage Club and received the W.R. White Award. The greatest joys of those years were her associations with the students, faculty, trustees and alumni of Baylor. She loved people and was known for helping students cook dinners to impress their girlfriends, locating impossible-to-find Homecoming tickets for students' dates, and graciously entertaining hundreds of people in her home. As an active Waco resident, Mrs. McCall was a member of the Historic Waco Foundation, Brazos Forum, Thursday Study Club and Waco Literary Club. She was an alumna and former advisor of Baylor's Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Her hobby was genealogy, and she held membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Huguenot Society of the Manakin Colony of Virginia, and the Washington Family Descendants. The Mary McCall Chapel of the Baylor Panhellenic Building was given in her honor by her two daughters, Linda Letbetter of Houston and Nancy Chapman of Dallas. She had four stepchildren: Jill and Dick McCall of Waco, Bette and Paul Miller of Mesquite, Ann and Allen Chroman of Pasadena, California, and Kathleen and Pieter Sigtenhorst of China Spring, Texas. Mrs. McCall had twelve grandchildren: Christopher Bruner, Lauren Chroman, Russ Chapman, Harvey McCall, Laura McCall Lacy, Lisa Letbetter, Roy Letbetter, Jeff Martin, Scott Martin, Mike Schell, Petra Sigtenhorst, and Jan Chapman Vicary. She had eight great-grandchildren: Katherine and Connor Chapman, Lane and Luke Lacy, J.T. Kirtley, Emma Letbetter, Rachel and Jackson Vicary. The McCall family received the initial annual "First Families of Baylor" Award. Mary's husband Abner died in 1995. In 2003 Mrs. McCall moved to the Edgemere Retirement Community in Dallas, Texas, where she was elected to the Board. She was a member of Park Cities Baptist Church and served as president of both her Sunday School class and the Variety Book Club. She was a sustaining member of the Baylor University Women's Council of Dallas, which recognized her with its "Woman of Distinction" Award, and a member of the Ermance Book Club of Dallas. Baylor University bestowed on her one of its highest honors when she received The Founders Award for extraordinary service and dedication to the university. Honorary pallbearers are Dr. Mark Armstrong, Harold Beaver, C.T. Sparkey Beckham, John Chiles, Matt Dawson, Billl Dube, D.M. Edwards, David Gwinn, Dr. Robert Packard, Larry Smith, Dean Brad Toben and Marvin Watson. Donations may be made to the Baylor University Roundtable Scholarship Fund, the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital in Dallas, Texas, the First Baptist Church of Waco, Texas, or Compassion Ministries of Waco, Texas. The family invites you to leave a message or memory in our "Memorial Guestbook" at www.WHBfamily.com.