Thelma Cartell Smith

Thelma Lee Cartell Smith, 89, of Stevensville, MD, died on August 17, 2012, in her home surrounded by her family. Born in Cumberland, MD, on March 24, 1923, she was the daughter of Charles M. Cartell (an immigrant from Spain) and Lola Shrout Cartell of Green Spring, WV. She graduated from Romney High, Romney WV, and received a degree as a Registered Nurse from Memorial Hospital Training School for Nurses in the early 1940s. Thelma married Harper McClure Smith (Cadet Radar Observer) on August 5, 1945. She worked as a Surgical Nurse beginning in 1944, when she also began volunteering as a nurse for the Red Cross, aiding infantile paralysis victims and patients with polio. Thelma worked as a secretary for the United States Government in Washington, DC., and, from 1959 - 1984, as a legal secretary for her husband. On January 28, 1960, Thelma became a Founder and President of Wheaton Women’s Democrat Club. She was a founding member of the Business and Professional Women‘s club of Silver Spring, MD After she and her husband retired and moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Thelma enjoyed gardening (especially training her rose bushes), watching football, politics, gourmet cooking, collecting French copper cookware, crafting, floral arranging, chocolate making, hosting parties and fundraisers, enjoying the sunset over the bay, and traveling. Thelma loved swans, dancing, and big band music. She was a passionate supporter of women, and a self-described “Domesticated Feminist.“ After mourning the death of her beloved husband in 1993, she became an active volunteer with the Bereavement Group of her local Hospice Organization. During this time Thelma found great fulfillment in the many widows she comforted and the lifelong friends she made. Above all things, Thelma cherished being a daughter, a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a grandmother-in-law, and especially, a great-grandmother. Thelma is survived by her daughter, Karen D.M. Smith; granddaughter Nicole C. Rosewag; grandson-in-Law, Jason E. Rosewag, her great-grandson, Grayson Harper Rosewag, and her cherished friends and neighbors. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Harper McClure Smith in 1993. She is remembered for her grace, generosity, style, intellect, and fabulous sense of humor. Friends may call on Tuesday, August 21 from 5-7 pm at the Fellows, Helfenbein & Newnam Funeral Home, P.A. in Chester, MD. A graveside service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday August 22, 2012, at Indian Mound Cemetery, Romney, WV. Memorial contributions Honoring Mrs. Harper M. Smith can be made to: Hospice of Queen Anne‘s, Inc., 255 Comet Drive, Centerville, MD 21617 (443-262-4100).

Thelma Cartell Smith

March 24, 1923 - August 17, 2012