Hammond, Ruth Ilene Wooldridge

Ruth Ilene Wooldridge Hammond ended her journey with us on Oct. 30, 2013, peacefully and with her family by her side.

Born near Randalia on Jan. 14, 1922, to Eliga Fernn (Reese) and Lysle A. Wooldridge, she was known as Ilene to those who loved her. The first child of her schoolteacher mother and blacksmith father, her birth was not registered until April when the snowmelt finally permitted her parents to get to town.

Ilene attended Upper Iowa University, graduating in 3 1/2 years with double majors and double minors, a feat made even more remarkable by her having paid for it herself with odd jobs as well as by giving piano and violin lessons. She played the violin, bassoon, piano, and organ along with the bass drum in the marching band.

Her mother had loved teaching in a one-room school in Clayton County, so she insisted that Ilene take education as one of her emphases. Ilene taught at Steamboat Rock when it was a girl's basketball powerhouse. No one, she would say, could fight dirtier and not get caught than a girl's team in the hunt for a title. Sadly, Ilene did not share her mother's enthusiasm for teaching - or students.

Looking for another outlet, she attempted to join the Marines, as her father once had. To her mother's delight, they turned her down. After working in the PX, wearing an airman's wings, and generally having a good time, Ilene enrolled at George Peabody College for Teachers/Scarritt College (now a part of Vanderbilt). While pursuing a degree in library science, she also managed to find time to attend the Kentucky Derby (how does a nice Methodist girl buy a mint julep, for the glass, you understand) and fall in love with the South. At the same time, she followed her true passion, advancing her piano training with classes and recitals.

To her master's degree, she later added specialties in medical cataloging and archival work which allowed her to work around the U.S. She was retired from Virginia Commonwealth University/Medical College of Virginia as associate professor.

A longtime member of First United Methodist Church in Iowa City, Ilene founded the church archives and served as church historian. To aid the church, she developed tour materials, designed note cards and books, and supported her spiritual community in any way she could.

She reared three children by herself in a time when men worked and women served. Exhibiting grace, courage and determination, she modeled daily the behavior her children should emulate. An iron will in a hat, red wool coat, and good leather gloves.

Ilene is survived by her daughter, Deborah of Iowa City; sons, Carl (Elizabeth) of South Barre, Vt., and Jonathan (Rebecca Palmer) of Cedar Rapids; as well as her granddaughters, Katherine and Eleanor. Her brothers, Robert and Gene (Virginia) Wooldridge, also survive her.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her sister-in-law, Thelma Wooldridge; and her nephew, Dana Wooldridge.

Services will be 2 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4, at First United Methodist Church, Iowa City. (Sunday parking ordinance will be in effect for the streets around the church.)

In lieu of flowers, donations may be addressed to Iowa City Hospice or the Palliative Care Center at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Online condolences may be sent for her family through the Web at www.gayandciha.com.

We are hollow with our loss, but are grateful for having known her, and proud to have shown those qualities she most valued: loyalty, truth, perseverance, and unending support.

Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service is caring for Ilene's family and her services.

Published Nov. 2, 2013 in The Gazette