Obituaries as published in the November 29, 2020 issue of The Living Church.
The Rev. Dr. Frederick Hardman Shriver III, longtime professor of church history at General Theological Seminary, died October 7, the day after the 60th anniversary of his ordination as a deacon.
He was a native of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and a graduate of Harvard College. After completing his studies at General Seminary in 1960, he was ordained by Bishop Wilburn Campbell, and served as curate of Trinity Church, Morgantown, West Virginia, for two years. He pursued a doctorate in church history at Cambridge University, studying the ecclesiastical policy of James I and the Puritan-Arminian controversy.
Shriver taught history at the University of Wisconsin for several years before returning to General to join the faculty in 1974. He wrote many articles and reviews and contributed an essay to the important volume The Study of Anglicanism. He was an enthusiastic teacher, famed for his many letters and notes, written long-hand in black ink with his distinctive penmanship. He had a great love of travel, especially in Italy, and cultivated a worldwide network of friends. He retired in 1998, becoming emeritus professor of church history.
The Rev. Dr. Manning Lee Smith, who led small-town congregations throughout the Appalachian region while serving as a college administrator and counselor, died October 4, aged 77.
Smith grew up in Charles Town, West Virginia, and after earning a degree from Wake Forest, prepared for the ministry at Virginia Theological Seminary. He later received a master’s degree in counseling and a doctorate in education from the University of Maryland.
After his ordination in 1968, he became vicar of Emmanuel Church in Moorefield, West Virginia, and went on to serve congregations in Ashland, Kentucky, and Charleston, West Virginia, and as chaplain of West Virginia State College. His longest tenure was as rector of St. Matthew’s Church in Oakland, Maryland, for 12 years, and he remained in that community for the rest of his life.
Smith resigned from St. Matthew’s in 1986 to become director of student services at Garrett Community College in McHenry, Maryland, a role he held for 14 years. He was one of the founders of the local hospice chapter and worked as a behavioral counselor with the county health department. He was chaplain of Oakland’s volunteer fire company and directed the oompah band for the town’s Oktoberfest for 40 years. After retiring from his college work, he served for seven years as rector of St. James Church in Westernport, Maryland.
He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Katharine, their two children, and five grandchildren.
The Very Rev. Dr. Ronald Wayne Summers, a longtime priest of the Diocese of Lexington, died October 24, aged 83.
A native of Lexington, he was a graduate of the University of Kentucky. He felt a call to ministry at an early age as a member of the Baptist Church and served as a pastor in the Christian Church before becoming an Episcopalian in his late 20s. He prepared for the priesthood at the Episcopal Theological School of Kentucky.
He was ordained in 1976 and served first at St. Raphael’s Church in Lexington before becoming rector of St. Andrew’s, Fort Thomas, Kentucky, where he served for 25 years. He was very active in community life, serving on numerous boards. He was especially proud of his work with the Wood Hudson Cancer Research Library in Newport, Kentucky.
Upon his retirement in 2009, Bishop Stacy Sauls appointed him dean of the Cathedral Church of St. George the Martyr at the diocesan camp, Cathedral Domain, in recognition of his faithful support of the camping ministry for decades. He also served interim posts at Christ Church, Harlan and Holy Trinity, Georgetown, Kentucky, and taught Bible studies and greeted visitors from the receptionist’s desk at Lexington’s Christ Church Cathedral. He was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Lou, and their daughter, Rebekah.