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IN LOVING MEMORY OF
Ruth Elizabeth
Zelle
March 7, 1915 – December 8, 2004
Obituary
Ruth Elizabeth Von Verdo Zelle, age 89, a resident of Louisville, KY, and formerly of Wheaton, died December 8, at Norton Audubon Hospital in Louisville. She was born March 7, 1915 in Minneapolis, MN, to Sadie Feleen and Emil Von Verdo.
After a childhood spent in the upper Midwest, Ruth graduated from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and then from Wheaton College where she met her husband Louis F. Zelle. They were married in 1940. From 1945 until 1948 they served as fraternal workers with the Presbyterian Board of Missions in the French Cameroon, Africa. Upon their return, they made their home in Central Illinois where Ruth was an active volunteer as well as a member of the League of Women Voters, American Association of University Women, and a founding board member to the Champaign County Mental Health Association. Following a family move to Louisville, KY, in 1963, Ruth returned to school, receiving a Master of Science in Social Work from Kent School of Social Work, University of Louisville. For the next 20 years she worked as a psychiatric social worker at University of Louisville Hospital inpatient psychiatry.
Following her retirement in 1980 she remained active in her church and community, serving as an elder at Calvin Presbyterian Church and two denominational task forces and then as an involved member of Southeast Christian Church.
Ruth was a treasured friend and dearly beloved by everyone who knew her. She had style, grace, and elegance and was known for her beautiful hats and flair for fashion. She was a wonderful hostess making guests and visitors feel warm and welcome. Ruth was also an avid reader, kept up with current events, loved to travel and have adventures. She had a strong sense of social justice and equal rights, never hesitating to put her beliefs into action when the occasion arose. Above all she was an ardent Christian and loved her Lord Jesus Christ in whose love she now abides.
She was preceded in death by a son, David.
She is survived by her husband of 64 years, the Rev. Louis Zelle; children, Carla Zelle Wolff, the Rev. Trina (the Rev. Philip Reller) Zelle, and Stephen M. Zelle; grandchildren, all of whom she was so proud, Eric and MacGregor Grier, Adam and Caitlin Reller, and Benjamin Wolff.
Services were held in Louisville, KY. Interment is private at Wheaton Cemetery.
Memorial gifts may be directed to Moody Bible Institute, 820 N. LaSalle Blvd., Chicago, IL 60610-3284.
After a childhood spent in the upper Midwest, Ruth graduated from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and then from Wheaton College where she met her husband Louis F. Zelle. They were married in 1940. From 1945 until 1948 they served as fraternal workers with the Presbyterian Board of Missions in the French Cameroon, Africa. Upon their return, they made their home in Central Illinois where Ruth was an active volunteer as well as a member of the League of Women Voters, American Association of University Women, and a founding board member to the Champaign County Mental Health Association. Following a family move to Louisville, KY, in 1963, Ruth returned to school, receiving a Master of Science in Social Work from Kent School of Social Work, University of Louisville. For the next 20 years she worked as a psychiatric social worker at University of Louisville Hospital inpatient psychiatry.
Following her retirement in 1980 she remained active in her church and community, serving as an elder at Calvin Presbyterian Church and two denominational task forces and then as an involved member of Southeast Christian Church.
Ruth was a treasured friend and dearly beloved by everyone who knew her. She had style, grace, and elegance and was known for her beautiful hats and flair for fashion. She was a wonderful hostess making guests and visitors feel warm and welcome. Ruth was also an avid reader, kept up with current events, loved to travel and have adventures. She had a strong sense of social justice and equal rights, never hesitating to put her beliefs into action when the occasion arose. Above all she was an ardent Christian and loved her Lord Jesus Christ in whose love she now abides.
She was preceded in death by a son, David.
She is survived by her husband of 64 years, the Rev. Louis Zelle; children, Carla Zelle Wolff, the Rev. Trina (the Rev. Philip Reller) Zelle, and Stephen M. Zelle; grandchildren, all of whom she was so proud, Eric and MacGregor Grier, Adam and Caitlin Reller, and Benjamin Wolff.
Services were held in Louisville, KY. Interment is private at Wheaton Cemetery.
Memorial gifts may be directed to Moody Bible Institute, 820 N. LaSalle Blvd., Chicago, IL 60610-3284.
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