Obituary: Mary Lou Humphries

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Mary lou humphries de Lindale, a former Baptist missionary to Vietnam and former president of the Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas, died June 18 in Denton. She was 88 years old. She was born on May 10, 1933 in Springdale, Ark., To James and Theresa Lookingbill. She made her profession of faith in Jesus Christ at the age of 8 and became a member of the First Baptist Church in Springdale, Ark. After graduating with honors from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, she began her teaching career in Lubbock, where she met Jim. Humphries. After three months of dating, they tied the knot on Christmas Day 1955 in Springdale, Ark. A few years later, the Humphries felt the call of God to Christian vocational service. Jim Humphries enrolled at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, and the first church they served was in Loco, Okla. In 1966, they answered the call to missions. They came out in faith, moving with their three young children to Saigon, Vietnam, where they served the congregation of the Trinity Baptist Church. She sang in the choir and taught English classes and cooking classes to Vietnamese women. They served in the foreign mission field eight years before returning to the United States in 1973. They moved to Arlington, where she mentored women and taught Sunday School at Northside Baptist Church. In 1978, her husband was called to pastor the First Baptist Church in San Marcos, and they served together for 13 years. In 1992, she was elected president of the Texas WMU. In May 2000, the Humphries moved to Lindale and became active in ministry at Tyler’s First Baptist Church. She was predeceased by her 63-year-old husband Jim Humphries and brothers James Lookingbill and Tim Lookingbill. She is survived by her son Matt Humphries and his wife Stella of Tyler; his son Mark Humphries and his wife Laurie of Tyler; her daughter Tracy Humphries Miller and her husband Ben of Denton; seven grandchildren; three great-granddaughters; and a sister, Sarah Schmidt. A memorial service will be held at Tyler’s First Baptist Church at 2 p.m. on July 10. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to be made to the Lottie Moon Offering for International Missions through the First Baptist Church in Tyler.



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