Ruth Ellen Morgan

Ruth Ellen Morgan (Blackburn), fondly called Thellen by her father, loved fiercely. Ruth and her husband, Russell R. Morgan, modeled “family” for their six children through annual visits to the family farm, tent camping adventures from coast to coast, a home full of music, and practices of care for strangers. Her life, love, and faith were rooted in people and place with a generous reach to many she would never know. Ruth was born on August 31, 1931 in White Pine, Tennessee, second daughter of Benjamin Alvah and Mary Ruth (Marston) Blackburn. She died peacefully in her own home, surrounded by loved ones, on Saturday, February 8, 2020. Ruth was preceded in death by her husband, Russell R. Morgan, and grandson, Zachary Aicher. Surviving her are her sisters, Margaret White and Katherine McNiel and their children and grandchildren. Also surviving are her children, Linda Morgan-Clement (Michael), Carol Antoniewicz (Kerry), Thomas Morgan (Nicola), William Morgan (Jeremy), Mark Morgan (Amy), and Kristin Aicher (Michael). Also surviving her are her grandchildren, Antonia and Morgan Clement; Jamey, Caley, and Chloe Morgan; Owen and Hugh Morgan; and Samantha Ferraro (Michael) and Avery Aicher. In retirement, Ruth looked forward to summers when the extended family would return to the ancestral family farm west of Dandridge and she would be hostess and matriarch. Watching lakeside shenanigans from the large porch and teaching children to safely drive the golf cart were regular activities. An equal measure of avian visitors and scripture readings, with the recent addition of her “cally cat,” kept her company. Ruth was an active member of Hopewell Presbyterian Church, the League of Women Voters, and Family and Community Education (FCE) Club. Prior to returning to Dandridge, she was a homemaker, piano and music teacher in the Sheboygan Wisconsin public school system. She was a member and occasional organist and choir director at First Presbyterian Church, where Russ was the pastor. During the family’s Wisconsin years, Ruth focused on her family. The manse was full of friends and neighborhood children; Ruth was often sewing: clothes, wedding or bridesmaids’ dresses, or costumes for theatrical performances were all created with love. The piano was in constant use and the number of musical instruments rivaled the household menagerie that included dogs, snakes, cats, rabbits, toads, and gerbils. Ruth graduated from Maryville College with a degree in biology and from Lakeland College with a degree in music education. Her attention to the natural world and her love of music were passed on to her children and grandchildren. We, her children, will watch for the return of the bluebirds in the spring and remember her guarding our babies in the shallows of a Smoky Mountain stream. The music we make and enjoy brings back echoes of our childhoods, and her voice will forever remind us that life is given as a gift for loving both family and stranger. Mom, we thank you for your fierce and loyal love and the music of your life in ours. In life and in death we belong to God, with Daddy you are now at peace; well done good and faithful servant. A Celebration of Life service will be Saturday, March 14, 2020 at 11:00 AM at Hopewell Presbyterian Church in Dandridge. Memorials may be made to the Mission, Outreach, and Peacemaking Committee, Hopewell Presbyterian Church, 812 Hopewell Street, Dandridge, TN, 37725.