Mary E Wright

Mary Eva Raney Wright went home to her Heavenly Father on May 21, 2023. She was born in a house on the outskirts of Belton, Texas on January 1, 1927 but grew up in the nearby farming community of Tennessee Valley which is now under the waters of Lake Belton. Her childhood was marked by the poverty of the Great Depression but she had a happy and close-knit family with father Newton Lee Raney Jr., mother Edna Caldwell Raney and sister, Pauline. Both sets of grandparents lived nearby and Mary would often ride her horse to see them.

Making a profession of faith at the Tennessee Valley Baptist Church, Mary was baptized in Cow House Creek when she was 10 years old. She was a dedicated and faithful Christian servant and believer for the remainder of her life.

Mary attended schools in Tennessee Valley and Belton, graduating from Belton High School in 1944. She attended college at Mary Hardin Baylor and graduated with a degree in speech in 1949 serving as the editor of the college yearbook during her senior year.

During the early 1950s, Mary worked with young people in churches in Corpus Christi and Alice, Texas and then attended Southwestern Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas where she met and married her husband Charles I. Wright who was studying to be a pastor. Theirs was a life-long companionship which lasted 58 years, ending with Mr. Wright’s death in 2011. Mary taught school in Ft. Worth until the birth of their first son, Charley, and then stayed out of the work place to raise her children, second son Sidney being born several years later.

In 1964, the Wrights moved to Round Rock, Texas where Mr. Wright was appointed Administrator of the Texas Baptist Children’s Home. Mary served along- side her husband at TBCH for 26 years, tutoring, teaching Sunday School, leading Girls Auxiliary and World Friends, and writing and producing numerous theatrical plays and skits in which TBCH children starred.

Mary was also a first grade teacher at Xenia Voigt Elementary School for 13 years beginning in the early 1970s. She greatly loved her students and was always proud of their achievements in adulthood, frequently commenting that she had taught this one or that one in 1st Grade. But Mary’s greatest affection was for TBCH and no matter where the Wrights lived, she kept a picture of the TBCH chapel on her wall. Especially during her final days, she would look at that picture and reminisce about children and staff that she had known, and incidents and event that had occurred while the Wrights served there.

Upon Mr. Wright’s retirement, the Wrights moved to West Texas, living in Alpine for 11 years, Midland for 5 years, and finally moving to El Paso where they remained until the end of their lives.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents, her sister, son Sidney and husband Charles. She is survived by son Charley, daughter-in-law Mirna, grandson Charles, and granddaughters Cynthia Schmitz (Chris), and Courtney Nicli (Otto).

Mary will be interred at Cooke-Walden Capital Parks Cemetery in Pflugerville, Texas.

The family would like to express sincere thanks to the staff at Good Samaritan-White Acres Assisted Living Facility in El Paso for their attention and care for Mary during her final years, and to the staff of Texas Baptist Children’s Home for their generous and loving assistance with the life celebration service in Round Rock.

Memorial donations may be made to:

Texas Baptist Children’s Home at www.ChildrenAtHeartMinistries.org/donate or mailed to 1301 N Mays, Round Rock, TX 78664.

Missions Fund, First Baptist Church El Paso at https://fbcep.com/give or mailed to First Baptist Church of El Paso, 805 Montana Ave. El Paso, TX 79902