March 21, 1952 To the Members of the Faculty:
Miss Mary P. Caldwell, assistant professor of teaching, passed away Friday morning, March 21, 1952. Miss Caldwell has been a member of the instructional staff of the college since 1922. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Monday, March 24, 1952, at St. Luke's Episcopal Church. Burial will be in Greenwood Cemetery, Any member of the staff who wishes to attend the funeral may do so by making arrangements with his administrative head. Any student who wishes to attend the funeral service may be excused from class attendance during the hour of the service. The flag will be carried at half mast during the half day when the funeral occurs and the Campanile will be played at four o'clock that afternoon as an expression of respect for the long period of service rendered so devotedly and loyally by Miss Caldwell. Please make an announcement of these facts to your students.
Sincerely yours, J. W. Maucker, President Minutes of the Faculty Senate, May 19, 1952, Docket No. 469
From 1906, first as a student and later as a member of our faculty, Mary Pickett Caldwell knew our campus intimately. She did all her undergraduate work at Iowa State Teachers College, earning several teaching diplomas and receiving the B. A. degree in 1919. Graduate study at Columbia University led to the master's degree in 1926. Successful teaching in the public schools of Iowa led to her appointment, in 1922, as supervisor in the Teaching Department of her Alma Mater. For almost thirty years she gave herself whole-heartedly to her vocation. Her high professional ethics, keen interest, and skill in teaching were recognized by membership in Delta Kappa Gamma, national honorary society for women teachers. At the time of her death she was serving as treasurer of the local chapter. Her artistry as a teacher and the warmth of her personality have left their impress on a succession of pupils and student teachers. Parents found in her a true friend and a wise counselor. To faculty members she was a beloved colleague. In the classroom and out, her quiet influence, through example, was reflected in the lives of those about her. The very last hour of her life found her engaged in conference with her students. She was a lifelong member of the Episcopal Church to which she gave untiring service. Her Christian fortitude enabled her to meet even the most serious problems optimistically. All who knew her were impressed with the variety of her interests: her love of birds, her appreciation of flowers, her stamp collections, the great mass of Iowa historical material collected over a long period of years. But greatest of all was her interest in people and her desire and capacity to share herself with them. The passing of Mary Caldwell is a shock to both pupils and the faculty of the Campus School. We have lost one who endeared herself to all through the great depth of the sincerity and wholesomeness, the expression of her basic philosophy of life. Tasks were not too small to receive her undivided attention, need was not existent without her concern; service was to her an opportunity; and, in all, life was a series of thrilling challenges to a keen mind, a willing hand, a generous heart. At this time, may we reflect with due appreciation on the blessings that have been ours, both personally and professionally, because Mary Caldwell has been one of us.
Marna Peterson Margaret Divelbess Howard Vander Beek Katherine Buxbaum