Obituaries, July 31, 2023
Mary Louise Cassingham
Mary Louise Cassingham, 90, of Fort Smith, Arkansas, died, Saturday, July 29th, 2023 at Methodist Village. She was born May 9, 1933, in Saint Louis, Missouri, to Henry and Louise Holt nee Spahn. In 1953 she married R. Jack Cassingham. Mary Lou graduated from Kokomo High School, in Indiana, in 1951. She received a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in 1954 and a master’s degree from Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis in 1970. While rearing four sons, she earned her Juris Doctorate from Loyola University, New Orleans, Louisiana, and graduated law review in 1978. She was a research associate for the Louisiana Supreme Court for 13 years and retired in 1993.
Mary Lou relished visiting with her sister, Nancy Allman, savored her grandchildren and great grandchildren, and was an avid reader. She delighted in stitching beauty and bits of wisdom into needlepoint and also enjoyed cruising the open seas where she became a Five Star Mariner. An endowed chair at the L.S.U. School of Dentistry was named for R. Jack and Mary Louise Cassingham in 2005. An endowed professorship was established in forensic psychiatry in 2012 in her honor. She was an active member of Main Street United Methodist Church in Kokomo, Aurora United Methodist Church in New Orleans, and Faith United Methodist Church in Fort Smith.
She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband and partner, R. Jack. She is survived by her sister, her sons: Dr. Scott Franklin Cassingham and wife Pamela of Shreveport, Louisiana; LTC (Retired) Jack Holt Cassingham and wife Catherine of Fort Smith, Arkansas; Guy Henry Cassingham and Tanya of Atlanta, Georgia; and Lee Jay Cassingham of Colorado Springs, Colorado. She is also survived by six grandchildren: Amanda, Lydia, Camille, Hannah, Megan, and Sean, and four greatgrandchildren: Jayden, Isaiah, Jackson and Luna.
Family and friends extend to Methodist Village Senior Living a tremendous thank you for the loving care they provided Mary Lou during her time there. Mary Lou Cassingham’s remains were cremated. A memorial service will be held at Faith United Methodist Church at 2:00 PM on Saturday, August 12th, 2023. In lieu of flowers please consider memorial contributions to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), Habitat for Humanity of New Orleans, Louisiana, Methodist Village Senior Living or the Charity of your choice.