Biography:

Mary Virginia Kidd, known throughout her life as Ginger, was born on March 18, 1944, at Randolph Field Air Force Base, Texas, to James Travis and Pauline Lee Bowden. At the conclusion of the war, the family returned to Hope, Arkansas, where Ginger enjoyed an idyllic life making school friends who have remained close even to the present day. After high school she attended Ouachita Baptist University for one year before transferring to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville where she graduated with which she proudly described as an English degree and not an education degree.

They married while her husband was in law school at Fayetteville and a few short months after his graduation he entered on duty as a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. His transfers resulted in her having taught English in five different schools in Arkansas and Indiana. She took every opportunity to improve her educational credentials having attended writing seminars at Harvard, Cornell, and Oxford along with taking numerous master's level courses in Rhetoric and Writing at UALR. Her career of teaching for 40 years including having served as the head of the English Department at El Dorado High School and having taught advanced placement English and literature as head of the English Department at Pulaski Academy for twenty-five years.

Ginger was a very dedicated teacher as evidenced by her having received the Stephens award in 2002. She was a very demanding individual who not only loved her students but who also expected them to master the art of writing. A great number of her former students who attended numerous different colleges have stated that more was expected of them in her high school classes than their college courses. She was proud of the number of her students whose scores in advance placement resulted in them not having to take basic college English courses.

Ginger utilized her instructional ability to provide Sunday School instruction at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Richmond, Indiana. She served as Sunday School Superintendent at St. Mary's in El Dorado prior her husband's transfer to Little Rock. She continued to support St. Margarets and its activities as it evolved from a church in a movie theater to its current presence.

Ginger’s love of British literature and travel resulted in her and her close friend, Cheryl Watts, taking numerous summer trips to England and Scotland along with several other trips throughout Europe. She was meticulous in documenting her journals with details about her trips especially as they related to historic individuals or events.

 She is survived by a sister, Marsha Goodrich of Little Rock, her husband Don of Maumelle to whom she was married for 60 years, a son, Michael and his wife, Jantaramas, of Springdale, three grandchildren, Michael, Jr. of Rogers, James of Springdale, and Mary Margaret a student at the University of Arkansas, along with one great grandchild, Wren Kidd of Rogers.

 A celebration of life will be held at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church on Saturday, July 6 at 10:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Arkansas Sheriff's Youth Ranch, P.O. Box 3964, Batesville, AR 72593, or St. Margaret's Episcopal Church, 20900Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, AR 72223. Services under the direction of RuebelFuneralHome.com