Harriet Frierson Crabb

Harriet Frierson Crabb, 91, passed away on January 10, 2016 at Meadowbrook Care Center in Urbana, Illinois. Funeral services will be conducted Sunday at 3:00 P.M. at Zion Presbyterian Church with The Reverend Chad Middlebrooks officiating. Burial will follow in Zion Churchyard. The family will visit with friends Sunday from 2:00 - 3:00 P.M. at the church. Oakes & Nichols Funeral Directors are assisting the family with arrangements. In lieu of flowers, donations honoring Harriet's life can be sent to Clark-Lindsey Village, 101 W. Windsor Road, Urbana, IL, 61802, care of the Life Enrichment Fund, or to University Place Christian Church, 403 S. Wright St., Champaign, IL, 61820, care of the Music Fund. Condolences may be extended online at www.oakesandnichols.com.She was born Harriet Clotilda Frierson on August 2, 1924, in Columbia, TN, to John Witherspoon Frierson, IV and Cornelia Brown Frierson. They preceded her in death, as did her husband of 55 years, Cecil Van Meter Crabb, Jr. and her brothers John W. Frierson V and Wallace Brown Frierson. Harriet spent her formative years surrounded by extended family in three communities in Maury County, TN, as described in her book Growing Up Years in Tennessee: A Tale of Two Houses (1998). She earned her B.S. in Chemistry from Agnes Scott College in 1946. She met "Van" Crabb, Jr. in 1945; he was the eldest son of the minister of Zion Presbyterian Church in Columbia. The Frierson family, along with fourteen others of Scots-Irish origin who had migrated from South Carolina, established Zion's original congregation in a log cabin in 1807. The couple married at Zion on June 28, 1947, with Rev. Crabb performing the ceremony. Harriet taught math, science and tennis at several high schools while Van completed his master's and doctoral degrees in Political Science. In 1952, he began his academic career at Vassar College, where Harriet earned her M.S. in Chemistry in 1955. She taught chemistry at Vassar and engaged in volunteer work, including serving as a Cub Scout den mother. In 1968, her husband was hired as department head at LSU, where Harriet completed her doctoral coursework in Chemistry. She was actively involved within the community and was known for her gracious hospitality. She was a member of the Baton Rouge Art League, Music Club of Baton Rouge, PEO, and held several leadership positions in the LSU Campus Club. She and Van were long-time members of University Presbyterian Church, where she served as Elder. Harriet enjoyed golf, bridge, and croquet, performances at LSU and the Baton Rouge Little Theater, and LSU football. In the 1970s, she began substitute teaching, maintaining a flexible schedule to travel in North America and abroad with her husband, extended family, and longtime friends. Harriet was an accomplished seamstress, singer, and cook. After Van's passing in 2003, she moved to Urbana to be near her daughter's family. She enjoyed many years in her apartment at Clark-Lindsey Village, was active on many committees and in PEO, sang in the CLV chorus, and reveled in many social events. She joined University Place Christian Church, and was involved in the Disciples Women's Club and senior service activities. She is survived by her son William Van Aldred (Elizabeth) of Milton, FL, daughter Cornelia "Cele" Otnes (Mark) of Urbana, granddaughters Allison Brinson (David), Elizabeth Pitman (Nick), and Emily Otnes, great-grandsons Joshua, Samuel and Elijah Brinson and Joshua Pitman; sister-in-law Patricia Frierson; several nieces and nephews.