Anna “Martha” Hudson Rowland Stevens, 89, of Lake Mary, FL, passed away peacefully on April 7, 2018. She was born the ninth of eleven children to the late John and Estelle Hudson, of Whigham, GA, on June 13, 1928. Martha graduated from the Georgia State College for Women (G.S.C.W.) in Milledgeville, GA in 1949, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Education (Home Economics). Later, Martha furthered her education by earning a Master’s Degree in Elementary Guidance Counseling from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL in 1972.
Martha married the late Lamar Rowland of Portal, GA in 1949. They moved to Sanford, FL in 1950, where they raised their daughter until Lamar’s death in 1959. She remarried in 1965, to the late Timothy Stevens of Sanford.
Martha’s career spanned more than 35 years, first as an educator at Southside Elementary in Sanford and later as a guidance counselor at Forest City Elementary. She was an active member of the First United Methodist Church of Sanford and enjoyed many hobbies including gardening and cooking. She was also a long-time member of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society, an international female educators’ sorority.
Martha is survived by her daughter, Deborah Rowland (Chuck) Hudson, of Seffner, FL and will always be known as “Nana” to her three granddaughters: Jessica (Dennis) Clanney of Nashville, TN; Sarah (J.P.) Anderson of Glen Ellyn, IL; and Meghan (Marty) Keil of Seffner, FL. She is also survived by her brother, Rev. David E. Hudson of Portal, GA, as well as five great-grandchildren: Jack, Alex, Sam, Max and Emma Kate.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the First United Methodist Children’s Home. Donations can be mailed to 51 Children’s Way, Enterprise, FL 32725 or placed online at www.fumch.org. A visitation will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 12th, with a funeral service to follow at 11 a.m., both at Baldwin-Fairchild Oaklawn Chapel in Sanford. The burial will follow immediately afterward at the adjoining Oaklawn Park Cemetery.
Immediately following the burial at Oaklawn Park Cemetery the family has invited everyone to stay for a reception at Baldwin-Fairchild Oaklawn Chapel for light refreshments.
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18