Florence Madeline Bearden "Bunny" Chichester

CHICHESTER, Florence Madeline "Bunny" Bearden, 83, of Richmond, died Thursday, August 27. She was born in Asheville, N.C. on May 21, 1926 to Florence Helen Carter Bearden and Walter Churchill Bearden Sr., and baptized in Trinity Episcopal Church there. She graduated from Lee Edwards High School in Asheville in 1943 and from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1948. She served in the U.S. Army and attained the rank of colonel. An occupational therapist, she headed the UNC Medical School's Department of Occupational Therapy and taught there. In 1978, she moved to Richmond, where she served as Head of Clinical Services for Occupational Therapy in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Medical College of Virginia until her retirement. She married Peyton Moncure Chichester Jr. in 1980. She and Peyton were among the founding members of the Greater Richmond Sailing Association. Her husband died in 2001. She was also predeceased by her parents; and her brother, Walter Churchill Bearden Jr. Survivors include a nephew, Walter Churchill Courtney Diehl; a stepson, Peyton Moncure Chichester III; and a stepdaughter, Mary Chichester-Smith. A memorial will take place at "Glen Cairne" on 559 Cambridge St., Salmouth, Va. 22405, at noon on September 12. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a contribution in Bunny's memory and for the Hospice of Virginia (Richmond) to the American Hospice Foundation, 2120 L Street, NW, Suite 200, Washington, D.C. 20037.
This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.