- Date Of Birth: May 1, 1917
- Date Of Death: October 14, 2017
- State: Michigan
Audrey Ethel (Snyder) Harding, Ph.D., of Midland, died peacefully at her home on Saturday, October 14, 2017, surrounded by family and friends. Her large heart gave way at last and she slept softy away — age 100 years and 5-1/2 months.
Audrey was born in New York City, a block from Times Square, on May 1, 1917, the daughter of Elsie (Rheinhardt) Snyder and Heinrich (Henry) Snyder (nee Schneider). She graduated from Hunter High School, a highly selective public school in Manhattan, and then earned her AB from Barnard College (part of Columbia University) in 1938. She attended the Teachers College of Columbia University from 1942-1944. From 1941-1944, she served as Office Assistant to Dr. Samuel T. Orton. Then, after attending Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School, she served in the Navy from 1944-1947 (WAVES), doing secretarial work and intelligence testing. She was stationed in Washington, D.C. and Norfolk, Virginia. As the only women in her class, she earned her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from The University of Michigan in 1951.
As a clinical psychologist, Dr. Harding worked with the Midland Schools, the Saginaw Valley Child Guidance Clinic, was a consulting psychologist with Family and Children’s Service of Midland, and worked part-time with the Midland-Gladwin Community Mental Health Clinic. She held part-time teaching positions at Northwood Institute, Delta College, and Saginaw Valley State College. In 1967, she established a private practice in clinical psychology in Midland.
She married Kenneth Gordon Harding on May 20, 1961, in Midland. He predeceased her on March 30, 2010.
She enjoyed traveling and wandering through Germany, Switzerland, France, England, Italy, Holland, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, and the U.S. She spent memorable summers at the family cottage on Long Lake near Traverse City, where she enjoyed swimming, sailing, waterskiing and attending concerts at Interlochen. She loved children, especially her grandchildren.
Dr. Harding was a member of Mid-Michigan Psychologists, Inc., American Psychological Association, Association for Children with Learning Disabilities, Michigan Society for Mental Health and the East Central Michigan Comprehensive Health Planning Council.
She was also a member of the Liberal Arts Club of Midland, the Child Study Group, the American Association of University Women, the Memorial Presbyterian Church, the International Order of the King’s Daughters and Sons, and she enjoyed playing bridge weekly with her local bridge club.
Left to cherish Audrey’s memory are her step-children Alan Roy (Lalah) Harding, Margaret Alice (Stan Halpin) Harding, and Katharine Eva (Bill Plate) Harding; her former step-daughter-in-law Ann Heron Moe; and three step-grandchildren, David Alan (Kirsten Andersen) Harding, Mary Ann Harding, and Kenneth Howard (Valerie) Harding, and a step-great-grandson, Frederik Augustus Harding. She is preceded in death by her husband, her parents, and her Aunt Anna (Rheinhardt) Allen.
Audrey’s family would like to give special thanks to all her in-home caregivers over the years – Jean Schneider, Paulette Bird, Debbie Church, Katelynn Jones, Kelsey Jones, Patti Klein, Melody Lowery, Katy Wedge, Serra Kigar, Bobbie Bauder, Pat Finney, and Vickie Irving – for their excellent care, almost becoming members of her family. Also special thanks to Seasons Adult Day Services Program and to Mid-Michigan Home Care Hospice Program. Her caregivers and hospice staff allowed her to remain at home on the Chippewa River until her last day on Saturday. She loved the river, having lived on its banks for 66 years where she swam in summers, and ice-skated and cross-country skied in winters. She many times said, “The joys of living on the river far outweigh the occasional minor inconveniences.”
