Mary Alston Riddick

Mary Belle Alston Riddick passed away on December 5, 2016 in Dallas, Texas, at the age of 87. She was married for 62 years to the late Dr. Frank Adams Riddick Jr. After living over fifty years in New Orleans, Louisiana, she moved to Dallas, Texas, following the passing of her husband.

Mrs. Riddick, the daughter of John Lloyd and Mary McGowan Alston, was a native of Covington, Tennessee. She attended Sophie Newcomb College, and she graduated cum laude from Vanderbilt University with a Bachelors of Arts. While in college, she was a member of the sorority Alpha Omicron Pi.

She was married in 1952 and taught elementary school in Davidson County. As a young mother, she lived in St. Louis, Missouri, and Augusta, Georgia, relocating as Dr. Riddick completed his training and later service in the US Army Medical Corps. She moved to the New Orleans area when her husband joined the Ochsner Clinic, residing initially in Metairie and later in uptown New Orleans.

Mrs. Riddick was an involved member of the New Orleans community. She served as secretary of the Committee for Better Schools and president of the Ochsner Wives Hospitality Club, in addition to being a board member of the League of Woman Voters of Jefferson Parish. Mrs. Riddick’s responsibilities extended to the church; in addition to being a communicate of Trinity Episcopal, she served as president of the Mother’s Club and chair of the Heavenly Days committee at St. Martin’s Episcopal School, and she was a member of the Women of the Church at St. Augustine’s. She was a past member of the Orleans Club.

She was an avid reader and connoisseur of class cinema who, despite her loftier interests and advanced age, remained a cognoscente of current popular culture. She was a shrewd and perceptive bridge player, who took the time to teach bridge to novices, particularly the wives of Ochsner residents. She traveled extensively with her family and friends, exploring every continent with the exception of Antarctica.

She leaves behind three children: Laura Riddick Dufresne (Dr. Raymond G. Dufresne) of Barrington, Rhode Island; Frank Adams Riddick III (Carol Mykolyk) of Dallas, Texas; Dr. John Alston Riddick (Amy Elizabeth Betz) of Nashville, Tennessee. Her youngest daughter, Mary Anne Crawford Riddick, preceded her in death.

She cherished her eight grandchildren: David Raymond and Julie Anne Dufresne; Jordan Taylor, John Winston, and Anderson Haines Riddick; Alston Elizabeth, Hollis Sutherland, and John Dixon Riddick.

She is survived by her brother, Jack Alston (Rose), of Beaumont, Texas.

Beloved for her intelligence, candor, and moxie, she will be missed greatly by her friends and family.

A memorial service will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church in New Orleans on January 13, 2017. Donations to the Riddick Diabetes Institute at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation can be made in her memory.