Lydia Ovitz Powell

Lydia Ovitz Powell was born on February 8, 1948, in Boulder, Colorado. Her mother, Vernetta, was a social studies teacher and her greatest inspiration. Her father, Ernest, was a mining engineer whose career led the family to relocate frequently. Her big sister, Kris, was a master quilter, phenomenal cook, and the ultimate host for dinner parties and family gatherings.

The family settled in Eagle Pass, Texas when Lydia was in third grade. The small border town became home. It’s where Lydia made lifelong friends, of whom there are too many to list. She played first-chair flute and piccolo in the high school band, led by director and mentor Charlie Davenport. Band taught her to take pride in her work and always try her best.

In 1966, she enrolled at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, to study pre-med and become a forensic pathologist, but soon realized she didn’t want to be in school forever. (Look how that turned out.) She graduated with a bachelor’s in English and history, and later earned a master’s in history from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.

Lydia relished being a mother to daughter Mykil and son Jody, the latter of whom we can thank for her beautiful grey hair. When Lydia and Rachel became a couple, she gained a son, Ryan. It became a genuinely blended family—one in which love transcended bloodlines and last names. Lydia was an amazing mother to each one of them, steadfast in her discipline and unconditional in her love. As the children grew up, each pursuing their individual goals, she expanded her role to include mentor and friend. They laughed (a lot), drank cold beers together, talked often, and hugged every single time they saw each other, coming and going. Mykil, Jody, and Ryan knew they were loved, and Lydia knew she was loved, too. Lydia was a remarkable mother.

Lydia was also a revered middle school teacher. She taught U.S. and Texas history for 38 years. She set the bar high for her students and even higher for herself. Lydia was a teacher in every sense of the word. She worked nights, weekends, and summer vacations to learn as much as she could about the subject she was teaching, and it rarely felt like work. Her curiosity was propelled by her dedication to empowering others. The more she learned, the more she gave back to all of us. When Lydia saw there weren’t any books about the San Antonio missions for school children, she wrote the book on them, The San Antonio Missions: A Study of Their History & Development.

She taught U.S. history by starting with the Civil War instead of colonization and the American Revolution. She wanted her students to understand how close America came to the brink of forever dividing into two nations. Like an investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board dispatched to an accident site, which was long one of Lydia’s dream jobs, she wanted her students to work backwards. To piece together how America got to the Civil War and identify what could be done to ensure that it never happened again.

Lydia believed in her students before they believed in themselves. “Let me know when you get into law school,” she wrote on a student’s assignment. Fifteen years later, when that student was sworn into the State Bar of Texas, Lydia was there, beaming with that magnificent smile we all know and will miss.

Lydia retired from the classroom in 2009 and proceeded to teach all of us what retirement and a full life could look like. She remained the cool mom and the biggest fan of Mykil, Jody, and Ryan. She leaned into being a grandmother. When Savannah, Vaughn, Raegan, or Rylan were with Ita, as they called Lydia, she made them feel like they were the only person in the room. She strengthened her relationship with her big sister, Kris. She had so much fun and shared so many laughs with friends. Friends who were like family, she called them. The monthly luncheon that she organized for Eagle Pass High School friends was always an event, drawing 20-30 people for food and fellowship.

Lydia grew in her faith and became a leader in her church, Laurel Heights United Methodist Church. She read the classics, including John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley and toward the end of her life she savored each sentence of Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables, a doorstop of a book. She re-watched her favorite movies and miniseries, like Band of Brothers, John Adams, Lonesome Dove, Roots, The Pacific, and The Outlaw Josey Wales. She loved John Wayne movies but hated The Alamo. Its historical inaccuracies were unforgivable. Each fall, she looked forward to college football; and each spring, college baseball and softball. She loved a cold beer after mowing the lawn. She loved building a meal on-the-fly in the grocery store and was never shy about consulting the butcher; they were on a first-name basis. She fell in love with the stage, purchasing season tickets to the Majestic Theatre. She volunteered at Chandler House and Habitat for Humanity, showing up to home builds eager to work, wearing a tool belt and carrying a thermos.

Marriage had seemed like an impossibility ever since Lydia and Rachel became a couple in 1997. But their lives changed in 2013 with the landmark U.S. v. Windsor Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage. On April 14, 2014, Lydia married Rachel, her Esposita, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, before family and friends, including Rachel’s 85-year-old mother, Gloria. The celebration was joyous and long overdue. So much love carried out into the world from that small reception room overlooking the mountains.

Lydia’s and Rachel’s love was absolute. When Lydia and Rachel wanted to do something, they did it together. They were the ultimate teammates and life’s traveling companions. They loved birding and vacationing at the Texas coast. In 2016, they traveled to Europe for a month. Rachel’s brother Dan and sister-in-law Jean were gracious hosts and tour guides. Of the trip’s many highlights, they visited Normandy, where Lydia took a knee in the sand to remember the fallen. Soon after returning from Europe, they bought an RV and a Toyota Tundra. It was time to see America.

Lydia was first diagnosed with uterine cancer in Spring 2019 and declared cancer-free after a successful surgery. The prognosis was an incredible gift and the green-light for Lydia and Rachel to go on what they were calling, “The Trip of a Lifetime.” They loaded up the RV, “Charlie,” brought canine navigators Abigail and Marty, and hit the road. All told, they traveled 8,500 miles across 11 states over three months, with camping buddies Mary and Amber. They basked in America’s immense and eclectic beauty; marveled at Mount Rushmore and the Oregon coastline; rode all-terrain vehicles and giggled like little girls; and reconnected with family and friends, some of whom they hadn’t seen in decades.

In November 2019, a large malignant tumor was discovered in Lydia’s lower left abdomen. Not all of the tumor could be removed during surgery, and the recommended course of chemotherapy treatment was palliative, not curative. After much reflection, Lydia decided to forgo chemotherapy. She wanted to keep living her life on her terms, sustained by her faith and the love of family and friends. Her humor and perspective never wavered. When she was discharged from the hospital, the first things she wanted were a dozen glazed donuts and coffee with cream and sugar.

Lydia’s finals months were filled with perhaps the most priceless lessons she could teach any human being. Not just how to live but also how to die. Lydia and Rachel flew first-class to Hawaii to visit Rachel’s brother Dave and sister-in-law Joann. Flying first-class for the first time was one of those adventures to which Lydia remarked, “This is why decadence is so popular.”

Over the last four months, Lydia’s and Rachel’s home welcomed an endless procession of visitors from around the world. Days were measured in hugs, stories, tears, laughs, prayers, and “I love you’s.” Lydia was serenaded, in her living room and at her bedside, with the bass, cello, and guitar. She asked visitors to read her favorite passages, including Affirmations of Faith from the United Methodist Hymnal, the poetry of Robert Frost, and being a lifelong historian, the Declaration of Independence and the Gettysburg Address.

Lydia drew her grace in part from one of her favorite Bible verses, Romans 5:1-5: “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

Lydia Ovitz Powell, 72, went home to be with her Lord on March 23, 2020. She died at home, surrounded by love and attended to by Embrace Hospice, especially her nurse Adriana. Lydia was preceded in death by her parents, Vernetta and Ernest Ovitz, sister Kristan “Kris” Thomson, nephew Christopher “Wade” Martin, and ex-husband Raymond Powell.

She is survived by wife Rachel Goeres of Converse, Texas. Her three children: Mykil Powell (Justen Hamann) of Castle Rock, Colorado; Jody Powell (Kami Powell) of San Marcos, Texas; and Ryan Sachetta (Shannon Crider) of San Antonio, Texas. Four grandchildren: Savannah and Vaughn Powell of San Marcos, Texas; Raegan and Rylan Hamann of Castle Rock, Colorado. Niece Paige Bender (Reed Bender) of Round Rock, Texas. Cousins Lynne Hughes Maloney of West Linn, Oregon and Kent Ragsdale Hughes of Fraser, Colorado. Great-niece Mina Tsalikis of Hanover, Germany, and great-nephews Evan Bender of Washington, D.C. and Justin Tsalikis of Hanover, Germany. The First Ladies, Abigail Adams and Martha Washington, beloved dogs. The Goeres and Gavett families who welcomed Lydia with open arms the moment they met her. And the countless friends who brought so much joy and laughter to Lydia’s life.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating your time or money to Habitat for Humanity of San Antonio (habitatsa.org) or Laurel Heights United Methodist Church (laurelheights.org). The family would like to express its deepest gratitude to Dr. Reverend Paul L. Escamilla and the Laurel Heights United Methodist Church community; Embrace Hospice; and niece Paige Bender who helped care for Lydia in her final days.

The funeral and placement of ashes will take place at Laurel Heights United Methodist Church when the COVID-19 pandemic has eased and family and friends can gather to celebrate Lydia’s remarkable life.

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” - 2 Timothy 4:7