One of Harris County’s ‘greatest and best educators’ dies after 34 years of service
Deemed one of Harris County School District’s “greatest and best educators” by a retired superintendent, Virgellen Burcham Lovitt died Monday at her Waverly Hall home.
According to Cox Funeral Home, she was 93.
She taught typing, bookkeeping, shorthand and business math for 34 years at Harris County High School, from its inception in 1955 until retiring in 1989.
“I used the skills she taught me in every single job I ever had,” retired superintendent Susan Andrews said in the school district’s news release Thursday, “and even today.”
Lovitt struck the fine balance between grace and grit.
“Her sense of humor oiled her no-nonsense teaching style,” Andrews said. “In her classes, you worked hard, you learned a lot, and you laughed a lot. She was the epitome of an excellent classroom teacher.”
Lovitt continued serving the district in retirement. She planted the magnolias and oaks on the left side of Pine Ridge Elementary School’s entrance. She volunteered as the cashier in the refreshment stand at fall festivals. She brought new socks to school for children who arrived without them, and she brought jars of jelly to the staff at the central office.
Lovitt is survived by: her sister, Etta B. Perry of Waverly Hall, Ga.; three daughters, Dr. Etta Lovitt (Robert Cohen) of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, Peggy Welch of Buena Vista and Kathie Berends of Waverly Hall grandchildren, Abby Trantham of Buena Vista, Ellann Cohen of Portland, Oregon, and Jeptha Cohen (Lori) of Holland Michigan; and a great-grandson, Felix Cohen of Holland, Michigan.
A graveside funeral service is scheduled for 3 p.m. Jan. 8 at Waverly Hall Cemetery, with the Rev. Lee Thompson officiating. Visitation will be at Cox Funeral Home, 240 Walton St., Hamilton, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Jan. 8.
In lieu of flowers, the family would like donations to be sent to the Harris County School District for scholarships benefiting HCHS graduates. Checks should be written to the Harris County School District with the memo notation “Scholarship Fund” and mailed to 132 Barnes Mill Road, Hamilton, GA 31811.
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 6:16 PM.
