Martha Dale Fritts

Mrs. Martha Dale Richie Fritts, age 84, died peacefully at Baptist Memorial Hospital North MS on Thursday, April 30 2026. The family will receive friends in West Hall at Waller Funeral Home in Oxford, Mississippi on Sunday, May 3, 2026, from 3:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. Graveside services will be held Monday, May 4 at 10:30 a.m. in Oxford Memorial Cemetery, Oxford, Mississippi with Rev. Chris McAlilly officiating.

Born in Memphis, Tennessee, she met her future husband Eddie Fritts as high school sweethearts. Martha Dale studied at the University of Tennessee at Martin while Eddie attended the University of Mississippi. During her time at UT-Martin, she became a founding member of the campus chapter of the Chi Omega sorority, an involvement that would continue throughout her life as she later served as a national trustee on the Chi Omega Advisory Board.

Following their marriage in September 1961, Martha Dale and Eddie moved to Indianola, Mississippi, where they owned and operated radio stations across Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana for more than two decades. In 1982, the Fritts family relocated to Washington, D.C., when Eddie assumed leadership of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). This move marked the beginning of Martha Dale’s extensive involvement in the capital’s philanthropic and cultural landscape.

During her husband’s tenure at the NAB, Martha Dale took on the role of hosting spouses of board members from across the country, engaging them in educational and cultural opportunities throughout the Washington area. Her volunteer work extended to organizations including the Cancer Research Foundation and the Arlington Hospital Foundation.

Martha Dale’s service record included 12 years on the board of the Wolf Trap Foundation, which oversees the nation’s only national park for the performing arts. She was actively involved with the Meridian International Center, which works at the intersection of business and diplomacy to strengthen U.S. engagement worldwide. Her commitment to the University of Mississippi was particularly notable, as she helped host university galas in Washington that honored prominent political figures including the late U.S. Representative Jamie Whitten and the late U.S. Senator Thad Cochran as well as U.S. Senator Trent Lott, successfully attracting funds for university initiatives. She served on the boards of the University of Mississippi Foundation, the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts and the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy. Martha Dale was predeceased by her parents, Faye and Pierce Richie.

Martha Dale was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and animal lover who always put family first. She loved baking and arts and crafts with her five grandchildren, who affectionately knew her as “G.” Martha Dale is survived by her husband, Eddie Fritts; three children, Kimberley Fritts (Francis “Marion” Turner, IV), Timothy Owens Fritts (Tracy Holden Fritts) and Jennifer Fritts Darcey (Hugh James “Jim” Darcey), and five grandchildren: Margaret Malone Turner, Katherine Dale Fritts, William Edward Fritts, Mary Grace Darcey and Lily Elizabeth Darcey.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the University of Mississippi Foundation. Please direct your gift to the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthopy in the memory of Martha Dale Fritts. Gifts may be made online, by phone at 662-915-5944, or by mail: the University of Mississippi Foundation, 406 University Avenue, Oxford, Mississippi 38655.