Peatsy Hollings, Wife of Fritz Hollings, Remembered

Rita Liddy "Peatsy" Hollings, 77, died Sunday after a long, private battle with Alzheimer's disease, according to a report from The Post and Courier. Hollings was the wife of former U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings. The couple had been married for 41 years.

Democratic consultant Lachlan McIntosh remembered Peatsy Hollings as one half of a "real Capital Hill power couple." 

"Peatsy was a charming, strong, and effective advocate for our state," he told Patch. "As a former school teacher, she had a special passion for public education."

The University of South Carolina library has a brief biography of Peatsy in a description of Fritz Hollings archived personal papers.

"Mrs. Hollings, a teacher from Charleston, became interested in politics while attending graduate school at USC and worked on Hollings' successful campaign for the U.S. Senate in 1966," the library notes. "Afterward, she joined his staff as a research assistant in the Washington, D.C., office. Among other causes in the D.C. and Charleston areas, Peatsy devoted her time and energy to such organizations as the American Heart Association, March of Dimes and the American Cancer Society."

Marrying Fritz Hollings in 1971, five years into his Senate career, Peatsy Hollings was remembered for her advice and support behind-the-scenes in a Post and Courier report Monday.

"Everybody loved Peatsy, Republicans and Democrats," Charelston Mayor Joe Riley told the paper. "She was never elected but her role in public policy and achievements and progress and leadership in the state and certainly in Washington, was huge."

Read more of the Post and Courier report from Schuyler Kropf.

The State also has a 2004 profile on Peatsy Hollings looking at the couple's many years shuttling between Charleston and Washington, D.C.

And since their marriage, the blustery Hollings has counted on his wife, like he counts on no other, to keep his ego in check.

As he often jokes, Peatsy and Fritz Hollings "are in love with the same man — Fritz Hollings."

But Peatsy, observed U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., "would keep him grounded.

"When he'd get carried away, she'd say, 'Nooooowwwww, Fritz!' And that would be it."

Read more of The State's 2004 profile

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