Ruth Stephenson

Ruth Peterson Stephenson Ruth Peterson Stephenson, 97, of Charlottesville, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, May 8, 2013. Born in Brunswick County, on May 13, 1915, she was the daughter of the late William A. and Emma Sue Matthews Peterson. After the death of her parents, she came to Charlottesville, to live with her aunt and uncle, Nora and John Matthews. Mrs. Stephenson was educated in the public schools of Charlottesville and received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Education at Madison College, now James Madison University. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Charlottesville and of the Circle #5 United Methodist Women. Mrs. Stephenson was preceded in death by her husband, Eston Byrne Stephenson Jr. formerly of Charleston, West Virginia; a son, Eston Byrne Stephenson III of Racine, Wisconsin; and a daughter, Emily Stephenson Boldt of Lexington, South Carolina. She is also survived by six grandchildren, Eston Byrne Stephenson IV, Mark David Stephenson, Marcia Stephenson Brunswig, Kristy Lynn Stephenson, Marjean Boldt Ragsdale and Tina Boldt Sealy; and two great-grandchildren, Ronald Eston Brunswig and Cynthia Lynn Brunswig. While living in Charleston, West Virginia, Mrs. Stephenson was active in Children's Theatre Work, serving as President, Treasurer and make-up artist of the Charleston Children's Theatre. She was president of the Charleston chapter of the Madison College Alumni Association and was a diligent member and Sunday school teacher of Christ United Methodist Church. In the various states in which they lived, she was an active member of community theatre groups and directed plays and church pageants. While living in Chillicothe, Ohio, she was successful in establishing a community theatre. She worked with Head Start in Arlington and served as a substitute teacher and tutored home-bound students in Naperville, Illinois. She also taught in the junior high school of Grand Junction, Colorado. Mrs. Stephenson has been a member of and served in an executive capacity of the American Association of University Women, the United Methodist Church, and the United Methodist Women. When her husband retired as an Attorney at Law, they moved to Charlottesville. She became a member of FOCUS Women's Support Group. She was elected to a three-year term, from 1981 until 1984, as a member of the Alumni Board of Directors of James Madison University. She was also a recipient of the Alumni Distinguished Service Award from James Madison University in 1987. A funeral service will be held 11 a.m. Saturday, May 11, 2013, at the Hill and Wood Funeral Home Chapel with the Reverend Al Horton officiating. Interment will follow in Monticello Memory Gardens. The family will receive friends two hours prior to the funeral service at the funeral home, from 9 until 11 a.m. Friends may send condolences to the family at www.hillandwood.com.


This obituary was originally published in the Daily Progress.