Freda Trott, 1930-2020

Freda Lee Porter Trott, an International Mission Board missionary emeritus who shared the gospel among American Affinity Peoples in Brazil, died Oct. 22, 2020. She was 90.

Trott was born in Meridian, Mississippi, on Oct. 4, 1930, to the late Allen and Johnnie Porter.

She graduated from Meridian High School and Meridian Junior College before going to Mississippi College, Clinton, where she received the Bachelor of Arts.

After graduation she worked as secretary at First Baptist Church, Clinton, and then went to Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, where she received the Master of Arts in Religious Education. At the seminary she met Edward Bruce Trott, whom she married on June 5, 1953.

The Foreign Mission Board (now International Mission Board) appointed the Trotts in 1957 as missionaries to Brazil. They left with two small children, Debbie, 2, and John, 4 months, for Brazil, where they would serve for 32 years.

Freda’s first 10 years were spent in the city of Aracaju, where she had two more children, Mary and Paul. In Aracaju she served as founding principal of the K-9 Escola Batista (Baptist School). She founded the first GA organization (missions organization for girls) in the state, the first statewide WMU, played the piano for her church, directed the choir and taught Sunday School.

After 10 years in Aracaju, Ed and Freda moved to Campina Grande, Paraiba, where Ed served as the executive secretary of the Baptist convention. Freda directed the statewide Baptist camp Ed built and continued her work with GAs, WMU and music ministries. She also served as treasurer for her church, all while homeschooling her children.

Ten years later Freda and Ed were asked to move to an impoverished area of the state of Paraiba to develop and run The Living Waters Project, a large world hunger relief project. Ed oversaw the irrigation of the land, which was divided into sections and given to families in the area. Freda worked the next 12 years primarily with micro-financing projects for women, teaching them new skills, money management and marketing so that they could financially care for their families. She also opened and ran a school, a social work center and a free medical clinic. She also served as treasurer and procurement officer for the multi-million-dollar hunger relief project.

After retiring the Trotts returned to Mississippi, where they cared for her parents in the last 10 years of their lives.

ln Jackson, Ed and Freda joined Broadmoor Baptist Church, where they served in many capacities from Sunday School and Vacation Bible School leaders to ESL teachers. Later Freda was a founding member of Grace Baptist Church and then at Woodland Hills Baptist Church, where she continued teaching Sunday School and volunteering at a women’s prison ministry and Manhattan Nursing Home until the last couple of years.

Trott’s husband of 60 years, Ed, died in 2014. She is survived by four children, Debbie Pierce (Philip), John Trott (Darlene), Mary Nicholas (Tim) and Paul Trott; six grandchildren; five great grandchildren; brother, James Allen Porter (Virginia); and sister, Aileen Johnnie Lee.

A private family graveside service was held at Magnolia Cemetery, Meridian, Mississippi.

Donations in her honor may be made to the Edward Bruce Trott Institute in Pilar, Brazil, mailed to 14 Arlington Park, Jackson, MS 39211.

Read an obituary here.