Lois D Hartman

Lois Marie Dougherty Hartman left the mortal realm in the early morning hours of April 10, 2025, at the age of 101. She was born to James Harris and Miriam (Mitschke) Dougherty on November 17, 1923, in Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania. Upon graduating from Jersey Shore High School in 1941, she moved to Philadelphia where her father was employed in the war-time shipyards. She received an associate business degree from Pierce College and began a career as an executive secretary before meeting her husband at Loring Air Force Base in Maine.

On May 23, 1956, Lois married a handsome Texan, William C Hartman Jr., at her parents’ home in Lansdowne, PA. This launched a new career as a dedicated USAF officer’s wife. Within a few years she was a mother and became responsible for creating a home for her family at each of eight subsequent military assignments. Lois played a supportive role to her husband’s career, serving for many years as a Red Cross volunteer and also an active member of the Air Force Officers’ Wives’ Club. Upon the retirement of Lt. Col. Hartman in 1973, she moved to Shreveport, Louisiana, where together they built a custom home and lived for many years, while enjoying fishing on Toledo Bend Reservoir and exploring the globe. Widowed in 2004, Lois established a rich life on her own, pursuing passions of travel, cooking and playing bridge.

Lois is survived by her son, William C Hartman III, sister-in-law Patrecia Hartman, niece Karen Dougherty Jones, nephew Steven Hartman, and granddog DeDe. The accomplishments of which she was most proud include fifty-two years of faithful membership at Christ United Methodist Church, and the round-the-world trip taken in 1969 to visit her husband who was serving overseas as a pilot during the Vietnam War. An equally proud achievement was becoming a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, with documentation researched prior to the advent of a digital databases. Even to the end Lois’s mind remained lucid as her body slowly surrendered to the effects of age.

A private graveside service will be conducted on Tuesday, April 15, at Centuries Memorial Cemetery, Shreveport. A celebration of the life of Lois Hartman will be held at a later date. Any gift of remembrance should be directed to her favorite local charity Common Ground Community Shreveport.