"Do you remember the time when you were in Nursing School at Wesley hospital, and I came up to take you to the movies? We drove down Douglas to the Miller Theatre and saw Harvey." Freida "Hudgens" Schmidt was welcomed to heaven Friday, September 30 ^th , 2022 while her husband Ernie shared stories and memories of their 69 years of marriage.

Freida was a tough girl who referred to herself as "dad's chore girl", bred and sold horses to put herself through nursing school, and guarded cloth diapers against theft on an air force base during her husband's assignment. She grew up west of Anthony and started dating Ernie her senior year of high school, he was only a junior at the time. When reminded about the age difference, he refers to a country song about dating older women by Ronnie McDowell, we'll let you look up the lyrics.

Her sons Howard and Phil kept her on her toes as a boy mom. Jumping out of barns with weather balloon parachutes, sleeping on the floor next to a bed and causing a farm wide manhunt, and arguments that resulted in stitches and other injuries. The boys also helped her with her farm chores since she was the first and only woman in the area to drive a tractor. They helped with mending fences, caring for sheep, and she even paid them a penny for each potato bug they picked from the plants.

Many Harper County residents might remember her as a 4-H leader, Ernie remembers when she was judging entomology displays and explaining to one participant that a spider couldn't be included because it had 8 legs instead of 6. He plucked two legs off with tweezers. She continued to instill a love for biology and technology in her grandchildren Eric, LynnLee and Nicole.

She brought home health care to the region and was one of the first Women Advanced Nurse Practitioners. One of her proudest achievements as a nurse was the opening of a new Home Health office where she was promoted to Administrator for the county office. She believed in accessibility to medical treatment for all and worked daily to ensure that.

Polka dancing, pitch parties, and gardening. These were a few of her favorite things, but if you ran into her at the beauty shop on Fridays or at the bank, you might catch her with a binder full of photos and printouts. You could be stuck hearing stories about her three handsome great grandkids Otto (7 months), Briggs (8), and Evin (11).

She leaves behind husband Ernie and a fluffy energetic dog Max with instructions for them to look after each other.

Memorial service will be held 10:30 a.m. Thursday, October 6, 2022 at the Freeport Presbyterian Church.  Inurnment will follow in the Freeport Cemetery.

Friends may sign the register 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Tuesday and 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Wednesday at Prairie Rose Funeral Home in Anthony.

Memorials in memory of Freida may be made to the Freeport Presbyterian Church or the Harper County Health Department in care of Prairie Rose Funeral Home, 602 E. Main St., Anthony, KS 67003.