Edna M. Snyder

Edna M. Snyder passed away on Nov. 22, 2014 at her home, Lansdale, in Shenandoah Junction, West Virginia.

Born in Berkeley County on Sept. 25, 1915, she was the daughter of the late Oscar C. Mason and Clara Hayslett Mason.

After being graduated from Martinsburg High School in 1933, she matriculated at Shepherd College where she was a member of Phi Chi sorority (now Tri-Sigma) eventually serving as secretary, vice-president, and president. She was also a member of Kappa Delta Pi Honorary Society.

Graduating from Shepherd College with a B.A. in English, she began her teaching career in a one room school in Berkeley County. Mrs. Snyder later taught at Hedgesville High School.

After her marriage to Henry Snyder of Shenandoah Junction, she moved to Jefferson County where she taught English and Journalism at Charles Town High School. In addition to teaching, she also advised the staff of the award-winning student-run school paper, The Ricochet. Mrs. Snyder’s contributions to the development of her young journalists extended beyond the classroom. Often on Sunday afternoons, she had the newspaper staff to her home to complete “layout” and editing of the paper. One of her major successes with The Ricochet was booking a performance by budding, then Washington, D.C. country-western musician Jimmy Dean for a performance at Charles Town High School Auditorium realizing enough profit to fund of the Ricochet for several years. She also helped the staff fund the paper with “pizza sock hops” when pizza was a novelty just being introduced in this area.

Mrs. Snyder inspired creativity from her students. For example, one time, her students created a puppet show performing scenes from Shakespeare. The puppet act performed in many venues all over the Eastern Panhandle.

Favorite chaperones for school dances, her husband Henry, and she dazzled teen-agers when they took the floor at Homecoming dances and proms, but perhaps Mrs. Snyder’s greatest gift to her students was her willingness to listen to them and give personal counsel in an age that pre-dated guidance counselors. Many students spent hours confiding to her in Room 7 at the Charles Town high School on Congress St.

After retirement from teaching, she worked with her husband at the Montgomery Ward catalog store which they owned and operated in Charles Town.

She was a member of the Shepherdstown Chapter of the Eastern Star, the Shepherdstown Women’s Club and the Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church.

For more than 25 years, Mrs. Snyder volunteered as a docent at the Shepherdstown Museum.

She also served as educational adviser to Beta Delta Chapter of the Tri-Sigma Sorority.

For a number of years she was a secretary for the Emeritus Club of Shepherd University and until her death, she remained in alumni activities at Shepherd.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband of 60 years, Henry M. Snyder, Jr., and her beloved dog, Mike. She is survived by sister, Annis Moran, and husband, Frank Moran; two nieces, Sharyn Krauch and husband Frank; Debbie Rogers and husband William of Frederick County, Maryland; two nephews, Gary Moran and wife Jan of Aiken, South Carolina and Ben Miller and wife, Cathy, of Annapolis, Maryland, as well as sister-in-law, Jane Snyder Miller of Martinsburg. Twenty-one grandnieces and nephews also survive her; Lisa Zolkiewicz and husband Jeff, Cindy Cooley, Curtis Rogers, Daniel Moran and wife Laura, Brian Moran, Brian Oswald and wife Laurie, Douglas Oswald and wife Laura, Kelly Barger and husband James, Kimberly Simensky and husband John, Frank Krauch, III and wife Cindi , Tammy Mills and husband Randy and 21 Great-Great-grandnieces and nephews.

Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 29, 2014 at the Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Dr. Randall Tremba officiating.

Burial will be in Elmwood Cemetery, Shepherdstown.

Friends will be received from 1 to 3 p.m. today at the Melvin T. Strider Colonial Funeral Home, Charles Town.

Memorial contributions may be made to Mrs. Snyder’s favorites charities included Shepherd University Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 5000, Shepherdstown, WV 25443, Shepherdstown Library, P.O. 278, Shepherdstown, WV 25443 and Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 268, Shepherdstown, WV 25443.

Please sign the online guestbook and view her obituary at www.mtstrider.com.