Virginia Felstehausen Obituary Virginia Card Felstehausen was born in Webster, South Dakota, on September 3, 1937, the youngest of Harold and Irene Cards two children. Her drive to succeed began earlyIm not competitive, she often said, I just dont like to losewith top of the class achievements in academics, band, choir and cheerleading. After she graduated from South Dakota State University with a degree in home economics education, she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, to earn her masters degree in food and nutrition at the University of Wisconsin and make her home with her first husband, Herman Felstehausen. They had two children, Deborah and Mark. Ginny wrote university-extension publications and taught cooking classes while raising her children, channeled her competitive spirit into Girl Scout leadership, swim team refereeing and cookbook judging, and showed her interest in helping others through countless volunteer activities where she was usually in charge. When her marriage ended, she returned to the University of Wisconsin and earned her Ph.D. in continuing and vocational education. She met a family friend in South Dakota and fell in love. When she was offered a job at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, she told Richard Pagel he could move to Lubbock and marry her or their long-distance romance was over. They got married and he moved south. Theirs was a powerful love storyDick brought balance into Ginnys life, persuading her to come home from work when she stayed too late. Sadly, he died in 1993, only eight years after they were married. Dick had three children of his own, Lisa, Blythe, and Tom. Their blended family became a strong and enduring one. Ginnys love of teaching flourished at Texas Tech. Dr. Ginny, as she was known, taught undergraduate and graduate courses in family resources and consumer sciences education and served on dozens of thesis and dissertation committees, often as chair. She was a prolific researcher, securing almost $1 million in research funding. She was the recipient of numerous awards, among them the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Leader of the Year Award; Texas Techs Presidents Academic Achievement and Excellence in Teaching Awards; and the University of Wisconsin-Madisons Distinguished Alumni Award, School of Human Ecology. In addition to writing countless publications in family and consumer sciences education, she co-wrote Skills for Life, a textbook still in use in Texas schools today. Dr. Ginny was a beloved mentor of students, who often came to her for guidance and counselas well as laughter and treats. She held them and herself to high standards and helped students reach their goals. Her friend and colleague Sue Couch recounted a time Ginny asked how she coped when a student came to her with a particularly difficult challenge. Thats easy, Sue told her. I send them to you. During her time at Texas Tech, Ginny became a champion of Title IX athletics in general and Lady Raider basketball in particular. The Lady Raiders may not have had a greater fan than Ginny. Coach Marsha Sharp picked up on her fierce loyalty, and Ginny earned a place on the Texas Tech Athletic Council Advisory Committee. If not the first woman to be part of the council, she was one of the early few. You can count on there having been no doubt among council members about how Ginny felt about supporting womens basketball at Texas Tech. Her fandom knew few boundaries. As Coach Sharp put it, if she was unhappy with a call, Ginny was known to come down to the floor and teach the referees a thing or two about the game of basketball. Ginny was slowed but not stopped by frontal temporal dementia. Her first caregiver was a Texas Tech occupational therapy grad student, and with her began what would grow to be Team Ginnya self-selecting group of mostly Tech grad students who made sure Ginny stayed active and involved. She remained a teacher to the very last week and continued to be known throughout Carillon, where she lived, as she had been throughout her life for her smile and her joyful spirit. Hip Hip Hooray! were words she offered to anyone who needed cheering on. Ginny, who died on May 15, 2017, is survived by her children and stepchildren: Deborah (Will Blythe), Mark (Junco), Elizabeth Pagel (Richard Sanderson), Blythe Thomson (Keith) and Tom Pagel (Brenda); grandchildren and stepgrandchildren, Ruby McClellan, Maya Felstehausen, Erik Pagel (Mary Alyssa Preston) and Kellen Pagel (James Mayo); her brother, Charles Card; her caregiver Linda Wiggs and all of the members of Team Ginny; and countless family members and friends. A service to commemorate her life will be held in Lubbock at 2:00 p.m. on July 16 at Carillons Neil Chapel. Contributions in Ginnys memory may be made to the Felstehausen-Pagel Scholarship Fund, Texas Tech University, Center for Addiction and Recovery, Box 41160, Lubbock, TX 79409-1160. Services

Memorial Service Sunday July 16, 2017 2:00 PM Carillon Neil Chapel