December 9, 2024
In her 88 years, Mary Frances Fenn Hazeltine made an impact on people around the world at a magnitude that belied her tiny frame and gentle demeanor. Her devotion to community, faith, and education was part of a family tradition that continues to this day.
Mary’s husband, Barrett Hazeltine, Professor Emeritus at Brown University, and son Michael talk about Mary’s and the Fenn family’s remarkable legacy.
A family tradition begins in China
Mary’s grandfather, Dr. Courtenay Fenn, came to China as a missionary at the turn of the 20th century. Courtenay’s youngest child grew up to become Dr. William Fenn, Head of Foreign Languages at the University of Nanking. William married English professor Frances Fenn and they had two girls – the younger one being Mary, born in Beijing (then Peking) in 1935.
“Mom saw Gran-Gran [William Fenn] performing service to the community, which his father, sister, and brother were also involved in because they were all Christian educators,” observed Michael. “And both Gran-Gran and his wife came from an education background, so Mom very much believed that an educated population was important.”
Following WWII, the Fenn family settled in the US, but William remained involved in higher education in Asia through what was then called “The United Board for Christian Colleges in China”. He went on to serve what in 1956 became the United Board as General Secretary until his retirement in 1970.
Building on the tradition with a kindred spirit
While William led the United Board, Mary began forging her own path towards a lifetime of service. That path began with pursuing a Chemistry degree, which led to meeting the man who became her husband.
“My sister and Mary went to Wellesley College together,” explained Barrett. “Mary and I met and hit it off, and I found myself helping her carry a lot of furniture and belongings back home from Wellesley. I was pleased we had the same ideas and beliefs.”
That connection led Mary and Barrett to get married in 1956, the same year Mary earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from Wellesley and Barrett his Master of Science in Engineering from Princeton. They continued their educations at the University of Michigan, where Mary received her Master’s Degree in Physical Chemistry – just months after giving birth to their first child, Michael – and Barrett his PhD in Engineering.
In 1959, Barrett joined the faculty at Brown University. This brought the Hazeltines to Providence, Rhode Island, where they added daughters Alice and Patricia to the family.
Mary would become a fixture of the community through her volunteer work, with a focus on faith and equality. In addition to volunteering with the League of Women Voters, she fought for improved conditions at underserved schools when Providence integrated its public schools in the 1960s, which led to her becoming director of a remedial education program. She also gave her time to a home for the elderly, a support program for immigrants, and her church.
“Mom was treasurer at the church two days a week until she died. She also ran the food pantry at the church; you have to envision this tiny little woman giving orders to women who were twice her size,” said Michael, who himself continues to volunteer at the county food bank every week.
Education and the world
Barrett shared Mary’s passion for service, teaching and developing engineering degree programs at universities in Zambia, Malawi, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. These sabbaticals were made possible through the generosity of fellowships and grants, but the funding bodies would get “two for the price of one” because Mary volunteered to teach basic science and computing.
“Mary was loved by the students and her colleagues on the faculty because she was sympathetic and empathetic,” remembered Barrett. “We got a great sense of joy and gratification out of seeing how these institutions and projects turned out.”
Mary and Barrett also had an opportunity to share their expertise with schools across Asia through the United Board.
“The United Board asked Mary and I to give lectures for a month in several countries, like Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand,” said Barrett. “Mary did a lot of talking with women because in those days women were considered ‘the second sex.’ She wanted to encourage them that, ‘Look, you can do this as well as those guys can too.’”
A gift to build community among educators
Mary and Barrett’s influence extended through the generations: Michael worked as an electro-optics engineer before becoming a high school physics teacher, Alice as an engineer and then a math teacher, and Patricia as a minister and then as a provider of services for children on the autism spectrum.
Once Mary and Barrett had seen their six grandchildren through college, they began considering donations to support worthwhile causes. About 10 years ago, Mary started to donate to the United Board because of what the organization’s work had meant to her father, and to her.
“Even when Mom and Dad weren’t making financial contributions, the United Board was still in Mom’s mind,” said Michael. “It had been a fundamental part of her early life and she was always interested in what they were doing.”
After Mary passed away in 2023, the family wanted to recognize her passion for community and education, her interest in Asia, and her lifelong connection to the United Board. They did so through the Mary Frances Fenn Hazeltine Memorial Fellowship, which will help faculty and administrators from Asian colleges and universities develop as leaders. Part of the Fellowship was fulfilled through a legacy gift (IRA) made by Mary.
“Mom had wanted to support professional development of educators for a long time,” said Michael. “This Fellowship will do that by allowing a professor from China to meet with other educators to get new ideas.”
“We hope that people will think of themselves as part of a larger community of United Board Fellows and work as a team and not just at the university they're from, but as part of the entire educational community of the Far East,” added Barrett.
The 2024-25 Fellow is Dr. Xingbo Yin, Head of the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at Nanjing University – where William and Frances Fenn had taught. Dr. Yin is eager to live up to the legacy of the Fenn and Hazeltine families.
“…[T]he campus I am currently on was built by [Mary’s] parents,” Dr. Yin noted in an email expressing gratitude to Barrett. “[I]n the future, I am willing to be like you and your family, with great love and charity in my heart, to donate to the greatest extent possible, to help others, and to spread charity.”