Harriet Riddile

Riddile, Harriet 92 / Community Servant-The first quality of greatness is service. A life of service is the finest life we can live. Harriet Riddile spent much of her life very active in civic and cultural organizations, always helping people along the way. By any measure, she was a great American, an impassioned contributor to the community, and a loving mother and wife. Harriet Mary (Clarkson) Riddile, of Mount Dora, Florida, died on August 23, 2010. She was 92. Harriet was born on December 16, 1917, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her father, Arthur Van Dyke Clarkson, served as vice president of the First National Bank in Milwaukee; her mother was the former Adelaide Vera Bishop, who taught kindergarten not only in the Milwaukee school system, but also traveled in the early 1900s to the Western United States to teach young native Americans, while remaining very active in Milwaukee community organizations. Harriet was predeceased in 2003 by her beloved husband of 59 years, John Scott Riddile, Jr., who served in the United States Navy in World War II, and retired as AC-Delco Plant Engineer after 32 years with General Motors, before volunteering with SCORE, a non-profit organization sponsored by the Small Business Administration. Harriet recently moved to Mount Dora, after living all her life in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area, including in the communities of Wauwatosa, Whitefish Bay, and Bayside. She leaves her brother Walter Bishop Clarkson of Evanston, Illinois, her children John Scott (Patricia) Riddile, III of Leesburg, Florida, Andrew Spencer (Rita) Riddile of Saint Leonard, Maryland, and Arthur Boyd (Mari) Riddile of New Castle, Colorado, her grandchildren, Sarah (Matt) Kasten née Riddile, Jonathan Riddile, Caroline (Samuel) Sharpe née Riddile, Jeremy (Katie) Riddile, Graham Riddile, and Jeremiah Riddile a great-granddaughter, Grace Riddile, and many nephews, nieces, cousins, in-laws, and dear friends. A top athlete, excelling in field hockey and competitive diving at Milwaukee Downer Seminary, Harriet graduated in 1935. In 1939, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Roanoke, Virginia's Hollins College, still a top-ranked private liberal arts university. She enjoyed lifelong friendships formed at Hollins, an institution she supported for the rest of her life. Education and teaching were very important to Harriet. After marrying the man of her dreams in July 1943, she served for 17 years as a kindergarten and first grade teacher at Henry Clay School and Richards School in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin. In these positions, she caringly touched the lives of many hundreds of our most impressionable young citizens. During these years and afterwards, she gave her time and treasure, often as an organizational officer, to various enterprises, including: North Shore Congregational Church, Fox Point, Wisconsin; National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (U.S.); Woman's Club of Wisconsin; Wisconsin State Historical Society; Milwaukee County Historical Society; College Endowment Association of Milwaukee; Literacy Services of Wisconsin; Mayflower Descendants in the State of Wisconsin; Nathan Hatch Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution; National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in the State of Wisconsin; Milwaukee Art Center; Visiting Nurses Association Auxiliary; and, the American Red Cross. Her associations with numerous historical organizations reflect her keen interest not only in American heritage, but also in her English, Scottish, and American family tree, which included a founding father of the City of Milwaukee, George H. Walker. Harriet's profound love of music led her to donate the initial capital for the pipe organ installed at North Shore Congregational Church in the early 1990s. Time-honored, active members of North Shore Congregational Church, Harriet and John joined the church 60 years ago; their children became members, and most of their grandchildren were baptized there. Harriet served for many years in the church's chancel choir and hand bell choir. She was an accomplished pianist and organist, and a longstanding member of the Milwaukee Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Harriet cherished family and friends, starting with her husband and three children, whom she devotedly nurtured through both smooth times and rough times in their lives. She left her family with uncountable precious and treasured memories. Others will long remember her frequently updating the latest news about her three sons. Always giving, and blessed with a rare blood type, throughout her life Harriet donated to many families in the form of countless pints of her blood to the American Red Cross. A memorial service will be held at 1:30 PM on September 11, 2010 at North Shore Congregational Church, Fox Point, Wisconsin. Harriet will be interred next to her cherished husband and with her late grandfather, Walter Palmer Bishop, and grandmother, Mary Eliza (Graham) Bishop, at Forest Home Cemetery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on September 11, 2010. Memorial gifts should be given to the North Shore Congregational Church Endowment Fund, North Shore Congregational Church, 7330 N. Santa Monica Boulevard, Fox Point, Wisconsin, 53217. A warm, bright light has gone out in our lives, until we meet again.