Elizabeth Burks Ridenhour

Elizabeth Burks Ridenhour of The Stewart Health Center at The Cypress of Charlotte, died peacefully on March 15, 2013 at the age of 96. She was preceded in death by her husband, William Leighton Ridenhour; her son, William Leighton Ridenhour, Jr.; sister, Cornelia Burdeshaw; and brother, Charles Burks.

She is survived by her son, Robert Burks Ridenhour and his wife, Joanne, of Charlotte; two grandchildren, Jill C. Hatley of Fairview, NC and Robert Mark Ridenhour and wife, Suzanne; and two great-grandchildren, Isabella Sofia Ridenhour and Gabriela Karina Ridenhour, of Denver, CO.

William and Elizabeth (better known as Betty and Bill), were happily married for 65 years. Betty was born in Knoxville, TN on July 7, 1916, daughter of the late Charles Albert Burks and Grace Young Burks. She attended the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and Sweet Briar College in Virginia. Shortly after their marriage, Bill’s job took them to Baltimore, MD, where he retired. Upon Bill’s retirement, they took their sailboat, Wings of the Morning, south on the Intracoastal Waterway to Florida, where they lived on the boat for a year before settling into a condo in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. They spent several years cruising the Bahama Islands and the Florida Keys, after which they built a house in Hilton Head, and then moved into The Cypress in 1999.

Betty and Bill traveled extensively to Europe and Asia. They especially liked Hong Kong, where they went a number of times. She was an active member in her various churches and supportive of charities, actively serving the Florence Crittenden Home in Baltimore.

A memorial gathering will be held at The Cypress of Charlotte at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 20, 2013 with the Reverend Peter Brown officiating. Burial will be private in the family plot at Oakwood Cemetery in Hickory, NC.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 1001 Queens Road, Charlotte, NC 28207; Hospice and Palliative Care Charlotte Region, 1420 E. Seventh St., Charlotte, NC 28204; or the Cypress Employee Fund, 3442 Cypress Club Drive, Charlotte, NC 28210.

The family wishes to express their sincere appreciation to the entire staff of the Cypress and The Stewart Health Center for the loving care they gave to Betty.

“If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;

Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.”