Elva Ferguson

Elva "Bit" Ferguson, of Gallipolis, Ohio passed away on December 26th at Abbyshire Place in Bidwell, Ohio. She was born March 12, 1946 in Southside, WV to Waymer and Mary Newman. Weighing in at only 3 pounds, her family began calling her "Little Bitty Baby." This name continued and eventually was shortened to "Bit," which was the name that would stick throughout her life. Elva graduated from Point Pleasant High School in 1964. One of her greatest joys in life was making others happy. She helped others whenever she could, be it opening her home for someone to stay, preparing a meal, or giving away the last $5.00 in her wallet. Over the years family and friends were the lucky recipients of Elva's amazing cooking, but because none of the recipes were fully written down (she cooked from memory) they will never be duplicated. Her loved ones will never again have fried chicken, corn bread, chicken salad or no-bake cookies that taste as good as hers. In addition to spending time with friends and family, Elva loved doing her cryptograms, cleaning, and watching/feeding the birds. She was always busy doing something. She is preceded in death by her beloved husband Burlin Hayes Ferguson, her parents, and her siblings Bobby, Mary and Judy. Elva is survived by her children, Ernie (Patricia) Flora and Tricia (Marnie) Lambert; grandchildren, Chauna, Hayden, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Jonah and Ainslee; sister, Janet (Larry) Lanier; brother, Buddy (Julie) Newman; great-grandchildren, many nieces and nephews; and close friends, Regina Persinger Dinuzzo, Carol Swisher and Elmer Anderson. Her family thanks everyone who helped over the past couple of years and is especially appreciative of the caretakers at Abbyshire Place who treated Elva with the utmost kindness and respect in her last few difficult months. There will be a private service and burial in Columbus, Ohio on January 7, 2022. A celebration of Elva's life will be held in Point Pleasant, WV in the Summer of 2022. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to one of the following organizations: Ohio Bird Sanctuary (www.ohiobirdsanctuary.com ) or the Alzheimer's Association (www.alz.org).