Heaven gained a good one last week with the passing of Edith Libson Hardy.
The longtime Odessan was a cherished supporter of the arts in Odessa and a beloved teacher.
We are sad to see her go and send our support to her family along with our amazement at a life that was truly well-lived.
Edith worked as a Texas teacher for 31 years primarily in music education in Ector County.
She was a tireless volunteer who had a way of bringing others into whatever endeavor she was working on. People loved Edith and wanted to help her with whatever current project she was working on.
There were a lot of them.
She had a true passion for the theater and the Permian Playhouse is the strong community theater it is today due to people like Edith. She was a long time board member and even had her entire family involved there. The Playhouse presented her with an award for volunteering over 1,000 hours.
Edith served on the board of directors for many organizations including the Texas Alliance for Education and the Arts, Texas Music Educators, The Globe of the Great Southwest, Heritage of Odessa Foundation, Odessa Panhellenic, Pan American Round Table, the Nathaniel Davis Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, where she served two terms as a regent, and many others. She also worked with Peter Fox to establish the Texas Arts Council. Her volunteer hours ranged from 300 to 1200 hours per year. Edith was a charter member of St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church, a Paul Harris fellow with Rotary Club and a Rotary Ann.
Edith’s years of public service led to a number of honors including the 1975 International Who’s Who of Music, 1996 Heritage of Odessa Foundation Community Service Award, 2002 First Lady of Odessa Award from Beta Sigma Phi, 2002 Spirit of Odessa Women Award from Medical Center Hospital, and the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Odessa Council for the Arts and Humanities.
Her many, many contributions go on and on. She is someone who made Odessa shine just a little bit brighter. She did all of this while raising a family and teaching. But, here’s the really neat thing, she did it all with grace and class and always kind words for all.
Edith’s family can rest assured that she will always be remembered as one of Odessa’s true First Ladies.
A memorial service officiated by David Chancellor will be held in Odessa at 3 p.m. Saturday at Westminster Presbyterian Church.
