A proud alumna

Throughout the 20th century, Edith Renfrow Smith returned to her hometown of Grinnell, Iowa, and her alma mater, Grinnell College. Almost ninety years after graduating, she explains the impact of her college years this way: “You see, that’s my school…. Those are my friends that helped me grow up, for those four years…. I consider [those] people … part of my family.”

Edith Renfrow Smith at an alumni reunion. 1950s.

Mrs. Smith with her classmates on the steps of Mears Cottage, at their 50th class reunion, June 1987.

With her enduring pride as a Grinnellian, Mrs. Renfrow Smith has introduced other Black students to the campus. She was good friends with the parents of Grammy and Academy Award winning composer and jazz pianist Herbie Hancock (‘60) and says “Well, I talked about Grinnell all the time because Grinnell is just up here. Always has been.” She also recruited educator and genealogist Samantha Massingale Gerth (’91), who attended the College “because of things I said about Grinnell.”