Laurie Hartford

Laurie A. (Small) Hartford, 66, passed away on April 23, 2023, due to complications from heart surgery. She died at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, surrounded by loved ones.She was born in May 1956, the daughter of William A. Small and June Lenhart Small, and one of seven siblings. From an early age, Laurie showed a love of language, music, and acting. She learned to play the guitar and often led her family in singing at Christmas and on the front porch of the family home in the summer. She was featured in many stage shows when she was a student at Defiance High School and went on to study at Siena Heights University, earning a bachelors degree in theatre arts, with a minor in English literature, in 1979. Laurie also studied at the University of Toledo and earned a masters equivalent degree in British literature in 1984. An accomplished actress, she once auditioned for the Royal Shakespeare Company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England.Laurie found a perfect way to combine her interests in her career as a high school educator, serving for a total of 34 years at Lumen Christi High School in Jackson, Michigan, and Central Catholic High School in Toledo, Ohio. She taught English literature (with a special fondness for Shakespeare), and while at Lumen Christi, also served as a guidance counselor and Director of Theatre, overseeing the production of numerous plays and musicals.Laurie married the love of her life, Douglas Hartford, in June 1993, and they made their home in Toledo for 30 years.She will be dearly missed by Doug, along with her brothers and sisters, Patrick Small (Cris) of Greenville, North Carolina; Lisa Sealscott Frissora (Dominic) of Westerville, Ohio; Sue Halpern (Barry) of Plain City, Ohio; Tina Hiler (Ron) of Defiance, Ohio; Ben Small (Beth) of Cleveland, Ohio; and Betsy Allen Schild (Hal) of Alexandria, Virginia; her mother-in-law, Patricia Hartford Bunn of Lima, Ohio; her sister-in-law, Cheryl Hartford McAtee (Tim) of Lima, Ohio; her brothers-in-law, Tim Hartford (Julie) and Dennis Hartford, both of Oregon, Ohio; as well as many nieces, nephews, other family members, and a host of students who will always cherish her influence in her lives.She was preceded in death by her parents and her father-in-law, Earl Hartford.Laurie will always be remembered as a beloved wife, daughter, sister, aunt, teacher, and friendsomeone with an endlessly loving heart, a playful sense of humor, and an abiding passion for words and music. As fate would have it, the date of her death coincided with that of Shakespeare, 407 years earlier.Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak knits up the o-er wrought heart and bids it break. William Shakespeare, MacbethA memorial gathering is scheduled for Saturday, May 13, from noon to 6 p.m. at the Blanchard-Strabler Funeral Home, 3219 Tremainsville Road, in Toledo, Ohio (eulogy/music at 1 p.m.). Those who wish to honor Lauries memory are asked, in lieu of sending flowers, to donate to the Alzheimers Association. memorial service Saturday, May 13, 2023 1:00 PM Blanchard-Strabler Funeral Home 3219 Tremainsville Toledo OH 43613 United States blanchardstrabler.com Visitation Saturday, May 13, 2023 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM Blanchard-Strabler Funeral Home 3219 Tremainsville Toledo OH 43613 United States blanchardstrabler.com