A month or so ago, Pascagoula lost one of its finest citizens when Liz Ford passed away. Actually, the date was October 31, Halloween, which is somewhat appropriate since nobody liked to dress up and have fun with it more than Liz.
Mary Elizabeth Ford was born in Mobile, Alabama, on March 4, 1938, but that was just a technicality of where the hospital was. Liz was Pascagoula through and through, and loved our city so, so much.
After an active childhood here and a stellar run at Pascagoula High School, where she was in on everything, Liz headed to Ole Miss. If there’s anything that Liz loved as much as Pascagoula and her family, it was Ole Miss. At the University, she was president of both Delta Gamma sorority and the Women’s Student Government Association. Liz stayed involved with her sorority throughout her life, and it showed. The Pascagoula area is pretty Kappa Delta centric when it comes to sororities, but over the years, there has always been a nice sprinkling of DGs from down here, thanks a great deal to Miss Ford’s influence.
After Ole Miss, Liz returned to Pascagoula to begin what would become a 41-year career in the steamship industry. In fact, she was recognized as the first female Steamship Agent in the United States, and retired as Vice-President of a world-wide steamship agency.
Liz was clearly good at her job and well thought of in the industry. She was even better and more impactful as a community activist and ambassador for Pascagoula. Her contributions to our local community are really quite unfathomable.
You name an important Pascagoula or Jackson County committee, board, or commission, and chances are very high that Liz served on it. I had the privilege and honor of working with Liz on several such entities, and I can tell you that I have never seen any one person who cared more or did more for our city.
I would not even try to list every single group Liz served locally, as I would certainly miss a few. Therefore, I will submit to you only a sampling of her efforts:
- Jackson County Historic Preservation Commission
- Pascagoula Strategic Plan Steering Committee
- Main Street Pascagoula Board
- Jackson County Historical and Genealogical Society
- Singing River Little Theatre
- Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra Board
- LaPointe-Krebs (LPK) House and Museum Commission
Now, understand, Liz didn’t just serve on these bodies, she worked tirelessly for all of them, and was the heart and soul of many of them. Good gosh, Liz loved that LPK project, and the wonderful renewal of those properties doesn’t happen without her. Likewise, she was bound and determined that “Old PHS” on Pascagoula Street not be torn down, and, due largely to her efforts, the complex is now a successful senior living facility.
In late October, for the first time ever in the almost two decades we have put on the popular Krebs Cemetery Tour, Liz wasn’t able to participate, and we all missed having her tall figure, in full period costume, walking the grounds. As I write this column, Pascagoula’s 25th annual Downtown For The Holidays will be taking place tomorrow night. For the first time ever, as I move through the thousands who come to the Historic Downtown District for that beloved festival, I won’t be visiting with Liz as she performs her unofficial role of greeter to all, and that’s already putting a lump in my throat.
Anyway, I could go on and on- literally- about Liz’s presence locally, but our editor would probably nick me for too many words. Suffice to say that Liz Ford has had a hand in an amazing total of projects for the betterment of Pascagoula.
All the hard work she put in is so important and admirable, but I will remember Liz most for her wonderful, quirky personality and the way she went about her business and her life. She always had a smile on her face, was usually dressed to the nines (plus those costumes when appropriate), and was always in motion.
I will miss seeing that old silver Volvo of hers driving around downtown, going from meeting to meeting. I’ll miss that cool way she pronounced our hometown (“Pahs-cagoula”). I will miss how, when we showed up for our Historic Preservation monthly meetings, she always had a delicious cake, a couple of huge bags of chips, and a jug of tea waiting for us.
What I will remember most about Liz Ford is how much she loved Pascagoula – how much she cared about the city, her family, and her friends, and how she showed it through all her efforts to make this place even better. She truly was the Grand Dame of Pascagoula. Godspeed, Liz.
Richard Lucas may be contacted at rblucas17@gmail.com.
