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Mary "Christine" (Arnold) Fields was born on October 22, 1926 in Watts, Oklahoma, the daughter of Virgil Arnold (1900-1977) and Mary "Polly" (Ross) Arnold (1903-1995). Virgil and Polly were married on November 23, 1921 in Sebastian County, Arkansas.
Christine's birthplace in Oklahoma was a brief stop for her, and when her father Virgil accepted a job with the railroad, he sent a letter to Christine's mother Polly, telling her to sell the cow and bring the children Jessie "Isabelle" Arnold (1922-2004), Virgil "Ross" Arnold (1924-2000) and baby Christine across the river to the relatively bustling Fort Smith, Arkansas.
While attending Ouachita Baptist College, Christine met a strapping sailor back from the Pacific theater who became her life partner - Emmett B Fields (1923-2005) - and they were married on August 31, 1947 in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Together they embraced a creed of the college: "Knowledge is no blessing, unless it is used well and wisely."
Life took her to numerous university towns, but Nashville, Tennessee was her real home, and upon retirement she and Emmett undertook life on a sailboat, plying the Atlantic and Caribbean. They settled briefly in Annapolis, Maryland, before returning to Nashville, and Christine remained there until her health required a move to a skilled nursing facility near her son in Texas.
Her sense of adventure could not be contained in her home city, leading her to extensive travels both domestic and international. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, held a special place in her heart. Souvenirs of her travels lent her home a notable artistic flair, and her exposure to other cultures reinforced her love of fresh, intriguing foods and enriched her sterling reputation as a cook. Invitations to her dinner parties were seldom declined.
A voracious consumer of books and journals and a keen observer of current affairs, Christine was a superb conversationalist and a contributor to numerous literary societies. Her devotion to keeping up with current events ensured that her acquaintances were supplied with a wide range of newspaper clippings on topics that might be of interest to them.
While she accepted the inevitability of life's end, her own rage against the dying of the light manifested itself upon the birth of her first grandchild. She rebelled against the appellation grandmother: too old-sounding. She turned to French, where grand-mère, shortened to Mère, seemed genial. Mère she became to the next generation. She spent much of her later life doting upon her four grandchildren and trying to get them to stand still in front of a camera.
Christine was 91 years old when she passed away at her new residence in Austin, Texas on January 19, 2018.
Preceded in death by her parents and her husband, who was the only one to hold the title of President of Vanderbilt University, she was survived by a son in Austin, Texas, a daughter in Alexandria, Virginia and by four grandchildren.
Original obituary in The Tennessean on January 27, 2018
Mary "Christine" (Arnold) Fields was born on October 22, 1926 in Watts, Oklahoma, the daughter of Virgil Arnold (1900-1977) and Mary "Polly" (Ross) Arnold (1903-1995). Virgil and Polly were married on November 23, 1921 in Sebastian County, Arkansas.
Christine's birthplace in Oklahoma was a brief stop for her, and when her father Virgil accepted a job with the railroad, he sent a letter to Christine's mother Polly, telling her to sell the cow and bring the children Jessie "Isabelle" Arnold (1922-2004), Virgil "Ross" Arnold (1924-2000) and baby Christine across the river to the relatively bustling Fort Smith, Arkansas.
While attending Ouachita Baptist College, Christine met a strapping sailor back from the Pacific theater who became her life partner - Emmett B Fields (1923-2005) - and they were married on August 31, 1947 in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Together they embraced a creed of the college: "Knowledge is no blessing, unless it is used well and wisely."
Life took her to numerous university towns, but Nashville, Tennessee was her real home, and upon retirement she and Emmett undertook life on a sailboat, plying the Atlantic and Caribbean. They settled briefly in Annapolis, Maryland, before returning to Nashville, and Christine remained there until her health required a move to a skilled nursing facility near her son in Texas.
Her sense of adventure could not be contained in her home city, leading her to extensive travels both domestic and international. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, held a special place in her heart. Souvenirs of her travels lent her home a notable artistic flair, and her exposure to other cultures reinforced her love of fresh, intriguing foods and enriched her sterling reputation as a cook. Invitations to her dinner parties were seldom declined.
A voracious consumer of books and journals and a keen observer of current affairs, Christine was a superb conversationalist and a contributor to numerous literary societies. Her devotion to keeping up with current events ensured that her acquaintances were supplied with a wide range of newspaper clippings on topics that might be of interest to them.
While she accepted the inevitability of life's end, her own rage against the dying of the light manifested itself upon the birth of her first grandchild. She rebelled against the appellation grandmother: too old-sounding. She turned to French, where grand-mère, shortened to Mère, seemed genial. Mère she became to the next generation. She spent much of her later life doting upon her four grandchildren and trying to get them to stand still in front of a camera.
Christine was 91 years old when she passed away at her new residence in Austin, Texas on January 19, 2018.
Preceded in death by her parents and her husband, who was the only one to hold the title of President of Vanderbilt University, she was survived by a son in Austin, Texas, a daughter in Alexandria, Virginia and by four grandchildren.
Original obituary in The Tennessean on January 27, 2018
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Mary "Christine" (Arnold) Fields was born on October 22, 1926 in Watts, Oklahoma, the daughter of Virgil Arnold (1900-1977) and Mary "Polly" (Ross) Arnold (1903-1995). Virgil and Polly were married on November 23, 1921 in Sebastian County, Arkansas.
Christine's birthplace in Oklahoma was a brief stop for her, and when her father Virgil accepted a job with the railroad, he sent a letter to Christine's mother Polly, telling her to sell the cow and bring the children Jessie "Isabelle" Arnold (1922-2004), Virgil "Ross" Arnold (1924-2000) and baby Christine across the river to the relatively bustling Fort Smith, Arkansas.
While attending Ouachita Baptist College, Christine met a strapping sailor back from the Pacific theater who became her life partner - Emmett B Fields (1923-2005) - and they were married on August 31, 1947 in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Together they embraced a creed of the college: "Knowledge is no blessing, unless it is used well and wisely."
Life took her to numerous university towns, but Nashville, Tennessee was her real home, and upon retirement she and Emmett undertook life on a sailboat, plying the Atlantic and Caribbean. They settled briefly in Annapolis, Maryland, before returning to Nashville, and Christine remained there until her health required a move to a skilled nursing facility near her son in Texas.
Her sense of adventure could not be contained in her home city, leading her to extensive travels both domestic and international. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, held a special place in her heart. Souvenirs of her travels lent her home a notable artistic flair, and her exposure to other cultures reinforced her love of fresh, intriguing foods and enriched her sterling reputation as a cook. Invitations to her dinner parties were seldom declined.
A voracious consumer of books and journals and a keen observer of current affairs, Christine was a superb conversationalist and a contributor to numerous literary societies. Her devotion to keeping up with current events ensured that her acquaintances were supplied with a wide range of newspaper clippings on topics that might be of interest to them.
While she accepted the inevitability of life's end, her own rage against the dying of the light manifested itself upon the birth of her first grandchild. She rebelled against the appellation grandmother: too old-sounding. She turned to French, where grand-mère, shortened to Mère, seemed genial. Mère she became to the next generation. She spent much of her later life doting upon her four grandchildren and trying to get them to stand still in front of a camera.
Christine was 91 years old when she passed away at her new residence in Austin, Texas on January 19, 2018.
Preceded in death by her parents and her husband, who was the only one to hold the title of President of Vanderbilt University, she was survived by a son in Austin, Texas, a daughter in Alexandria, Virginia and by four grandchildren.
Original obituary in The Tennessean on January 27, 2018
Mary "Christine" (Arnold) Fields was born on October 22, 1926 in Watts, Oklahoma, the daughter of Virgil Arnold (1900-1977) and Mary "Polly" (Ross) Arnold (1903-1995). Virgil and Polly were married on November 23, 1921 in Sebastian County, Arkansas.
Christine's birthplace in Oklahoma was a brief stop for her, and when her father Virgil accepted a job with the railroad, he sent a letter to Christine's mother Polly, telling her to sell the cow and bring the children Jessie "Isabelle" Arnold (1922-2004), Virgil "Ross" Arnold (1924-2000) and baby Christine across the river to the relatively bustling Fort Smith, Arkansas.
While attending Ouachita Baptist College, Christine met a strapping sailor back from the Pacific theater who became her life partner - Emmett B Fields (1923-2005) - and they were married on August 31, 1947 in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Together they embraced a creed of the college: "Knowledge is no blessing, unless it is used well and wisely."
Life took her to numerous university towns, but Nashville, Tennessee was her real home, and upon retirement she and Emmett undertook life on a sailboat, plying the Atlantic and Caribbean. They settled briefly in Annapolis, Maryland, before returning to Nashville, and Christine remained there until her health required a move to a skilled nursing facility near her son in Texas.
Her sense of adventure could not be contained in her home city, leading her to extensive travels both domestic and international. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, held a special place in her heart. Souvenirs of her travels lent her home a notable artistic flair, and her exposure to other cultures reinforced her love of fresh, intriguing foods and enriched her sterling reputation as a cook. Invitations to her dinner parties were seldom declined.
A voracious consumer of books and journals and a keen observer of current affairs, Christine was a superb conversationalist and a contributor to numerous literary societies. Her devotion to keeping up with current events ensured that her acquaintances were supplied with a wide range of newspaper clippings on topics that might be of interest to them.
While she accepted the inevitability of life's end, her own rage against the dying of the light manifested itself upon the birth of her first grandchild. She rebelled against the appellation grandmother: too old-sounding. She turned to French, where grand-mère, shortened to Mère, seemed genial. Mère she became to the next generation. She spent much of her later life doting upon her four grandchildren and trying to get them to stand still in front of a camera.
Christine was 91 years old when she passed away at her new residence in Austin, Texas on January 19, 2018.
Preceded in death by her parents and her husband, who was the only one to hold the title of President of Vanderbilt University, she was survived by a son in Austin, Texas, a daughter in Alexandria, Virginia and by four grandchildren.
Original obituary in The Tennessean on January 27, 2018
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