MILDRED LORAINE BOS FELDMAN, PH.D.

1919-2017

On September 20, 2017, Mildred Feldman joined Al, her husband of 52 years, in the House of the Lord. Mildred Loraine Bos was born in Coopersville, Michigan, on October 31, 1919, to the late Margaret Raak Bos and Martin Bos. She is survived by two sisters Gretchen Vanderploeg Swibold of New Haven, CT and husband Richard Swibold, Jane Vanderploeg Deckoff of New York City and husband Marvin Deckoff, five children Louisa Feldman Livingston of New York City and husband Marty Livingston, Richard Martin Feldman of College Station, Texas and wife Alice Workman Feldman, Michael Bos Feldman of Houston and wife Marcia Forni Feldman, Edward Seth Feldman of Potomac Falls, Virginia, and wife Nancy White Feldman, Alicia Feldman Ten Eyck of Houston and husband Peter Ten Eyck, 11 grandchildren, and 11 great grandchildren.

Mildred’s father died when she was 7 years old. The tragic death of her young father affected her for the rest of her life. For a time, Mildred lived with her aunt and uncle in Holland, Michigan, a community so Dutch that little boys played baseball in wooden shoes and the adults still spoke Dutch. Mildred’s mother remarried 5 years later to Jan Vanderploeg, who adopted Mildred. Mildred grew up in Holland, but graduated from Central High School in Little Rock, AR, where her father was temporarily working for the U.S. Resettlement Administration.

After high school, Mildred enrolled at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. During her sophomore year, she met Albert Feldman and fell in love. She had promised her parents that she would not marry until she graduated, so two years later in 1941, she wore a wedding dress under her graduation gown, and she and Al were married immediately after the graduation ceremony. Mildred followed Al where his career took him, first to Wyandotte, Michigan, then to Joliet, Illinois, and finally in 1957 to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she and Al raised their family. After Al’s death, she eventually moved to Houston to be closer to several of her children.

Mildred was a lifelong believer in education. Her father Martin Bos was a teacher and was working on his PhD when he died. She herself earned her PhD in speech from LSU at the age of 52. All five of her children received advanced degrees. She was active in the American Association of University Women (AAUW), League of Women Voters, Operation Upgrade, P.E.O. Sisterhood, Volunteers in Public Schools, and for many years she volunteered in the adult literacy program in Baton Rouge. Mildred was a devout Christian. For many years, she served as editor of the Louisiana Presbytery newsletter. She later became an elder in Broadmoor Presbyterian Church, where she and her family were members from 1958.

Mildred believed in doing her share for the community. She was the first woman to serve as a jury foreman in Baton Rouge. She was a volunteer for Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Baton Rouge public radio and television, Women’s Rehabilitation House, Louisiana Industries for the Disabled and was the first woman to serve as president of the Audubon Kiwanis Club. She received a number of awards for her public service including the prestigious Golden Deeds Award from the Baton Rouge Inter-Civic Council in 1987 for her volunteer work.

Mildred loved to travel. When she had a young family, she and Al would load up the kids into the family car, and they would drive for two weeks every summer – one summer visiting all of the Great Lakes, another visiting Yellowstone, and another to Yosemite. When the kids were grown and gone, she got more adventurous and traveled to many places including New Zealand, Australia, Greece, Ecuador, Ireland, China, and Bhutan. Her last big trip was to India in 2002.

Most of all, Mildred was a devoted mother, and she worked selflessly to insure that her children grew up with integrity, independence, faith in God, an appreciation of music and the arts, and a sense of community.

Services will be held at Holly Hall Chapel, 2000 Holly Hall St., Houston, TX, 1:00 PM on Wed., Sept. 27. In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to the charity of your choice.