Ruth Penley Skerpan

STOUGHTON- Ruth Penley Skerpan, 92, widow of Alfred Andrew Skerpan, passed away Monday, Dec. 26, 2011, at her home in Stoughton. She was born in Lewiston, Maine, June 18, 1919, daughter of the late Ferdinand Josiah Penley and Lucy Lindsay. Before her first birthday, she moved with her family to Connecticut, where she spent her childhood and youth and attended Central Connecticut State College. Following her graduation in 1940, she taught elementary school in Connecticut, Hawaii, and New Jersey and received her Masters Degree from Columbia University Teacher’s College. After her marriage, she moved to Kent, Ohio, where she lived for over fifty years, returning to teaching after the death of her husband in 1967. She was a founding member of the Kent League of Women voters and an active member of the United Church of Christ, Toastmistresses International, and the Kent and National Education Associations. In her retirement she enjoyed traveling with friends and volunteering for Robinson Memorial Hospital, the Red Cross, and the Kent State University Museum. In 2003 she moved to Stoughton to be near her granddaughters. In addition to spending time with her grandchildren, she enjoyed book groups at the Stoughton Public Library, a music appreciation group at the Stoughton Area Senior Center, and the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society. She is survived by her brother, Robert Penley and his wife Francoise, of Paris, France; sister, Phyllis Kelley, of West Hartford, Connecticut; daughter, Elizabeth Skerpan-Wheeler, of Austin, Texas; son, Alfred Lindsay Skerpan, of Stoughton, and Marilyn Shawn Skerpan; grandchildren, Gabrielle, Briana, Annaliese, and Sophia Skerpan; nephews, Paul Kelley, William Penley, Alexandre Penley; and nieces, Linda Winchester, Carol Skerpan, and Jane Skerpan. Memorial services will be held at UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF STOUGHTON, 525 Lincoln Ave., Stoughton, at 11 a.m., on Monday, Jan. 2, 2012. Visitation will be at GUNDERSON STOUGHTON FUNERAL HOME, 1358 Hwy 51, Stoughton, from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012 and also at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of service on Monday. Flowers may be sent to Gunderson Funeral Home or donations in her memory may be made to the Second Harvest Food Bank or the Democratic National Committee. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to the Second Harvest Food Bank or the Democratic National Committee. Visitation will be at GUNDERSON STOUGHTON FUNERAL HOME, 1358 Hwy 51, Stoughton, from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012 and also at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of service on Monday. Memorial services will be held at UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF STOUGHTON, 525 Lincoln Ave., Stoughton, at 11 a.m., on Monday, Jan. 2, 2012.