Birth date: Aug 10, 1931 Death date: May 23, 2015
Services for Hattie Velma Rhodes, 83, of Lufkin will be held Saturday, May 30, 2015 at the First Missionary Baptist, 410 Scarbrough St., Lufkin, TX. 2:00 p.m. Burial will follow in the Pine Grove Cemetery in Nacogdfoches, TX. Visi Read Obituary
My name is Thomas Franks. I got to know Mrs. Rhodes when her husband, Dr. Odis Odean Rhodes, joined the faculty in the Department of Elementary Education at Stephen F. Austin State University in 1968. I was the Chair of that department at that time. He and I worked together until his retirement in 1992. Over that period of 24 years, I had the opportunity to visit with Mrs. Rhodes at several Christmas gatherings of the departmental faculty members and their spouses. What impressed me most about her was her sweet, gentle, kind spirit. Time spent in conversation with her was always uplifting. Another thing that impressed me was the devotion she and her husband had for each other. In their personal lives and their professional lives as teachers, they had a positive impact on thousands of people, including me.
