Obituary of Marye Kathleen "Kitty" Adkins-McIlwain
Marye Kathleen “Kitty” Ritter Adkins-McIlwain went to be with her Lord and Savior during the early morning hours of March 23, 2019.
Kitty was born May 26, 1926 in Anson, Texas and was the youngest of six children. She attended Hardin-Simmons University. After graduation, she came to Fort Worth as a summer missionary serving at Sagamore Hill Baptist Church. It was there she met her husband of 63 years, Luther Adkins. She had an outgoing personality that was evident to all who knew her. In the 1950s her personality enabled her to be the host of “Kitty's Playhouse”and “Kitty's Wonderland” on WBAP-TV Ch5. After taking a few years off to raise her two daughters, her personality lead her into a successful real estate career on the east side of Fort Worth. She loved to decorate her homes for everyday life, and especially for the changing of seasons and holidays. Her attention to detail again show the person she was and always flowed through to her wardrobe. She had a flare for accessorizing her outfits - from a small pin on a lapel to special shoestrings to her oversized glasses, you knew the this was one special lady. Kitty and Luther loved entertaining, square-dancing and playing any number of domino games.
After the passing of Luther, Kitty met Art McIlwain. A friendship that started from a common situation led to a second love for both. Art quickly knew the way to Kitty's heart by leaving a note (with a Snickers candy bar!) on her door each day. Their love reminded some of young love in the way they took care of each other and would watch television side by side. Even as Kitty's health began to fail, Art was always faithful to be at her beck-and-call and spent many hours by her side.
Kitty was preceded in death by her husband, Luther Adkins; parents: father, John W. Ritter, and mother, Bertha Emma Lee Thomas; brothers: John R. (“Pete”) Ritter, J.E. Virgil (“Jack”) Ritter, and Alvis (“Tex”) Ritter; and sisters: Jessie Mae (“Dink”) Ritter Lofton-Boren, and Mildred Deivah (“Dee”) Ritter Lepard.
Kitty is survived by her husband, Arthur McIlwain; daughters: Andrea Hoffman and Camille McCraw (husband, Randy); stepson: Bruce McIlwain (wife, Cecilia); three grandchildren: Holly Hoffman-Ortiz (husband, Steven), Andrew McCraw (wife, Carla), and Alyssa McCraw; and two great-grandsons: Hayden and Finley McCraw.
A time of visitation followed by a celebration of life service will be held on Wednesday, March 27, 2019 at Forest Ridge Funeral Home in North Richland Hills at 4pm and 6pm respectively. Burial will be on Friday, March 29, 2019 at Moore Memorial Gardens in Arlington, TX at 11am.
In lieu of flowers, please direct donations to The Goodfellow Fund at P.O. Box 1870, Fort Worth, TX 76101 or visit www.goodfellowfund.org.
