Obituary published on Legacy.com by Ciavarelli Family Funeral Home and Crematory - Ambler on May 9, 2023.
Deborah Hill Houghton Schmidt, 71, extraordinary mother and lover of all things creative and compassionate, died on April 30, 2023 in
Ambler, PA. She was the loving wife of Emmett Vance Schmidt MD PhD, of 45 years.
Debby was born in
Milwaukee, WI on March 8, 1952 to the late Franklin Otis and Gloria June Rockwood Houghton. She spent her childhood in Winter Park, FL, where she graduated from Trinity Preparatory High School. She graduated cum laude from Harvard University majoring in Visual and Environmental Studies, and graduated from Duke University with a Master's Degree in Health Administration.
Debby was as full of energy and life as she was intelligent. In her youth, she loved diving, swimming, canoeing, and tennis. As a teen she once swam with her friends across Daytona's (shark infested) Ponce Inlet waterway, only to discover with dismay that the tide had swept them half a mile off course upon reaching the opposite shore. Indefatigable, Debby walked everyone a mile up against the tide, and they safely swam back to their original starting point. She made full use of her intellect and energy in her career in her 20s before choosing to devote herself to her family. In
Durham, NC, she ran Duke University Hospital Medical Wards. Having met in Durham, Debby and Emmett were wed in Winter Park, and soon moved to New England to raise their family in Cambridge, Natick, and
Andover, MA.
As a mother in Massachusetts, she devoted herself to her children's education, becoming close friends with a number of her children's teachers and homeschooling one son for several years. One of her favorite jokes was "stop me before I volunteer again." She regularly hosted book clubs, worked ceaselessly in her garden, knitted, and enjoyed games of bridge and backgammon. She was an avid genealogist, and took her children on trips tracking their ancestors through graveyards and archives throughout the country. She played violin, and enjoyed taking her family to the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She entertained everyone in her life with endless quirky ideas, made abundant and joyful friendships wherever she went, and always thought first of caring for the safety and wellbeing of others.
Memorably, Debby was a wonderful artist, and designed many of the sets for productions by Andover's Merrimack Junior Theater. She was an ace at DIY projects, installed many of the hardwood floors in her own home, and always made sure every room was equipped with at least two scissors, three hammers and a pair of screwdrivers. She was a faithful Episcopalian, who with Emmett also raised her children to learn about and love all faiths and peoples. She loved animals and was rarely seen at home without a miniature schnauzer (or two) in her lap. She loved to travel and visited 5 continents.
Along with her husband Emmett, she is survived by her children Benjamin Houghton Schmidt MD (Stephanie), Meredith Avery Schmidt Edelstein PhD (Jason), and Daniel Emmett Schmidt (Maria Victoria). She is further survived by her grandchildren Maxwell Otis Schmidt, Joseph Reynolds Schmidt, Hannah Rockwood Edelstein, Clara Tebbetts Edelstein, and Pablo Franklin Schmidt, as well as her siblings Elizabeth Fulmer and Kenneth Houghton.
Funeral Services will be held privately. Memorial donations can be made in Debby's name to the school she at which she volunteered for many years: Esperanza Academy, 198 Garden Street. Lawrence, MA 01840; www.esperanzaacademy.org/give.