Person Page - 1751

     Robert Lester Sturm was buried at Mount Herman United Methodist Church Cemetery, Buckhannon, Upshur Co., West Virginia.² He died on May 27, 1949 at Buckhannon, Upshur Co., West Virginia.² He was born on May 27, 1949 at Buckhannon, Upshur Co., West Virginia.^1,2

     Ercie Mae Smith was buried at Mount Herman United Methodist Church Cemetery, Buckhannon, Upshur Co., West Virginia.⁴ Her Social Security Number was 232-38-6480.² She was born on December 12, 1928 at Barbour Co., West Virginia.^2,3,4 As of April 16, 1947,her married name was Sturm.^1,3 She married Charles Brooks Sturm, son of Rev. Lester Brooks Sturm and Stella May Carpenter, on April 16, 1947 at Volga, Upshur Co., West Virginia.^1,3,4 Ercie Mae Smith died on December 13, 1993 at Morgantown, Monongalia Co., West Virginia, at age 65.^1,2,4

     Thomas Eugene Dillon was born on March 16, 1950.¹ He married Peggy Jo Sturm, daughter of Charles Brooks Sturm and Ercie Mae Smith, in 1980.¹ Thomas Eugene Dillon died on October 9, 1992 at Annapolis, Anne Arundel Co., Maryland, at age 42.¹

     Ray Paul Loudin was buried at Mountain State Memorial Gardens Cemetery, Kerns, Randolph Co., West Virginia.¹ His Social Security Number was 705-09-2372.⁴ He was born on September 5, 1903 at Czar, Randolph Co., West Virginia.^1,4 He married Mary Marie Sturm, daughter of Gordon Dayton Sturm and Norah Henderson "Nora" Elmore, on January 9, 1924 at Elkins, Randolph Co., West Virginia.^1,5 Ray Paul Loudin married Elizabeth Beall in March, 1981 at Elkins, Randolph Co., West Virginia.¹ Ray Paul Loudin died on October 5, 1995 at Kingsville, Randolph Co., West Virginia, at age 92.^1,4

     James Paul "Jim" Loudin was buried at Grafton National Cemetery, 431 Walnut Street, Grafton, Taylor Co., West Virginia.^6,7 He was born on July 14, 1925 at Coalton, Randolph Co., West Virginia.^4,5,6,8,7 He married Margaret Alice Helmick on April 12, 1945 at Elkins, Randolph Co., West Virginia.^2,13,4,5,14 James Paul "Jim" Loudin died on April 27, 1966 at Newport News, Virginia, at age 40.^{2,13,5,6,7,14}

     Betty Rae Loudin was buried at Georgia National Cemetery, Canton, Cherokee Co., Georgia.^3,8 She was born on March 29, 1928 at Clay Co., West Virginia.^2,9,3,8 As of May 28, 1949,her married name was Kirkpatrick.¹⁰ She married James Franklin Kirkpatrick on May 28, 1949 at Russell, Greenup Co., Kentucky.^4,3 Betty Rae Loudin died on April 9, 2012 at Cumming, Forsyth Co., Georgia, at age 84.^9,3,8 She Mrs. Betty Rae (Loudin) Kirkpatrick, 84, passed away at Embracing Hospice in Cumming, Ga., on April 9, 2012, after a long illness. Mrs. Kirkpatrick, a retired registered nurse, was predeceased by her husband of 61 years, James Franklin Kirkpatrick, on January 24, 2011. She is survived by her sons, James Stephen Kirkpatrick of Wheat Ridge, Colo., and Joseph Franklin Kirkpatrick of Sandy Springs, Ga; and daughters, Patricia Ann Britz of Suwannee, Ga., and Betsy Sue Mitcham of Cumming. Mr. and Mrs. Kirkpatrick had six grandchildren, all of whom also survive: Jessica Rae Britz of Suwanee, Mary Megan Elizabeth Kirkpatrick and Kalen Kirkpatrick of Chicago, Ill., Bradley Michael Britz of Atlanta, Ga., Kelsey Brooke Kirkpatrick of Gainesville, Ga., and Lauren Claire Mitcham of Cumming. Betty was born March 29, 1928, in Clay County, the third of 12 children born to Mary Marie (Sturm) Loudin (1905-1980) and Ray Paul Loudin (1903-1997). She is survived by brothers, John C. Loudin of Mobile, Ala., Danny N. Loudin of Elkins and William D. Loudin of Dayton, Ohio; and sisters, Margaret Ann Miller of Sebastian, Fla., Sara Loudin Hinkle of Elkins and Judy Hedrick of Ohio. She was predeceased by siblings, Nancy, Jim, Mary Lou, Bob and Jerry. Following her upbringing on a small farm near Norton, Mrs. Kirkpatrick graduated from high school in Elkins in 1946, and earned her three-year registered nursing degree from Davis Memorial Hospital School of Nursing, Elkins, in June 1949, shortly after Mr. and Mrs. Kirkpatrick married in Russell, Ky., on May 28, 1949. The couple lived in a list of cities from the 1940s through the 1970s, including Syracuse, N.Y., Salisbury, Md., and Silver Springs, Md., and several cities in West Virginia. They made their home in South Charleston from 1971 until they relocated to Cumming in 2007. Mrs. Kirkpatrick retired from her position as head medical-surgical nurse at St. Francis Hospital, Charleston in 1991. She worked as a registered nurse for more than 30 years over the course of five decades from the 1940s to the 1990s, before, while and after raising her four children. She embodied the heart and soul of the nursing profession, and inspired numerous others into nursing. Betty Kirkpatrick was an avid gardener and naturalist who specialized in growing irises and roses and bird watching. Irises cultivated by her grandmother and mother flourished, and have spread to grace gardens from Colorado to Florida and the midwest. She was especially fond of hummingbirds, and constantly attracted them with feeders. Her extended family was a focus of her life and an inspiration. The survivors among the Loudin's 12 children and 71 grandchildren continue to hold annual reunions that began more than 60 years ago by Ray and Marie Loudin. The family publishes a newsletter to exchange remembrances and anecdotes among family members as far flung as Alaska, Oregon, Florida and New England. Recently, the newsletter has migrated from the mail to email to Facebook. They gather to make apple butter on Thanksgiving every year, a tradition that began more than 120 years ago with Mrs. Kirkpatrick's grandmother. Funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, April 12, at McDonald & Son Funeral Home Chapel, Cumming. Visitation will be Thursday from 9 a.m. until the hour of service. Interment will follow in Georgia National Cemetery, Canton, Ga. In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests donations in Betty's name to Embracing Hospice, 8013 Majors Road, Cumming, GA 30041; and the Alzheimer's Foundation of America, 322 Eighth Ave., 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001. Arrangements by McDonald and Son Funeral Home & Crematory, 150 Sawnee Drive, Cumming, GA 30040, 770-886-9899. on April 11, 2012.³

     John Clarence Loudin THEODORE, AL - John Clarence Loudin, 88, a World War II veteran and resident of Theodore, Alabama, died Thursday, May 16, 2013 at Allen Memorial Home. He was born May 14, 1925 in Coalton, WV to Ray and Marie Sturm Loudin. He graduated from Coalton High School in May 1943 then was drafted into the U.S. Navy in July 1943. He was commissioned on the U.S.S. Hyde AAA173 serving in the Pacific Arena - Iwo Jima and Okinawa in WWII. John was discharged from the Navy in April 1946 and joined the Army in July 1946 and was sent to the Panama Canal Zone. In April 1948, he was sent to Officer's Candidate School and commissioned as a 2nd LT in October 1948. In August 1950, he was stationed in Korea and served with the 3rd Military Railroad as an Executive Officer. In 1964, he retired from the U.S. Army as a Major and went to work for the General Adjustment Bureau in Tampa, FL, transferred to Macon, GA, and resided in Warner Robins GA. In 1979, he went to work for Crawford Company as a catastrophic adjuster and retired in May 1990. After retirement, he and his wife Kit enjoyed traveling together. He was honored to participate in the 2nd Honor Flight from Mobile to Washington DC. He was preceded in death by his wife, Catherine (Kit) Hoch Loudin, along with his siblings Jim Loudin, Mary Lou Daniels, Bob Loudin, Jerry Loudin and Betty Kirkpatrick. A committal service was held Tuesday, May 21, 2013, at the Alabama State Veteran's Memorial Cemetery in Spanish Fort AL.¹ He was buried at Alabama State Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 34904 State Highway 225, Spanish Fort, Baldwin Co., Alabama.^2,1 His Social Security Number was 235-34-2682.⁸ He married Catherine "Kit" Hoch.¹ John Clarence Loudin was born on May 14, 1925 at Coalton, Randolph Co., West Virginia.^1,2,8,3 He Not enumerated with his family in the 1930 Census on April 7, 1930.⁹ He married Ellen Davis on February 23, 1964.¹⁰ John Clarence Loudin died on May 16, 2013 at Mobile, Mobile Co., Alabama, at age 88.^1,2,8