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Edith Turpin Potter

1924 - 2021

Edith Turpin Potter obituary, 1924-2021, Durham, NC

Edith Potter Obituary

Edith Turpin Potter
November 15, 1924 - December 8, 2021
Durham, North Carolina - Edith Turpin Potter, known to many by her childhood nickname "Ditta," died in Durham, N.C. after a long and, as she often said, wonderful life. Born in Macon, Georgia, the daughter of Edith and Bill Turpin, she graduated from Vassar College in 1945. She studied piano with Robert Casadesus at the American School of Music at Fontainebleau in the summers of 1946 and 1947, then came to Chapel Hill for graduate work at UNC in Music. There she met Lee Harris Potter, whom she married in 1949. They raised four daughters, Elizabeth Page, Edith Culpepper (mar. Paul Keene), Lee Harris (mar. Gary Rogers), and Jane Merrick (mar. Bernie Quigley). She was predeceased by her brother William Turpin and by her husband of sixty-five years. The family lived in Chapel Hill, N.C., Greencastle, Ind., Oakton, Va., and Winston-Salem, N.C., in homes full of music, pets, and love. For many years she taught piano both privately and at Salem College. She and Lee spent several semesters directing the Wake Forest University programs in Venice, Italy, and London, England, where she was the "den mother" to many a homesick student. They also had a cabin in the mountains of southwest Virginia, where Ditta gardened, played the piano, made blackberry jelly, and welcomed friends and family.
Ditta will long be remembered for her warmth, generosity, and sense of humor, but also for her strong sense of right and wrong, her intellect, and her progressive politics. She was loved by many for her graciousness and hospitality. She possessed a flashing wit and a robust interest in exploring the unfamiliar. By her example, she taught her children how to be a firm and faithful friend, how to approach every challenge with courage and grace, and how to rejoice in every adventure.
She considered her nieces and nephew, Adriana Turpin Morrison, William Nelson Turpin, and Kate Turpin Cvitcovic, as well as Lucy Burke Ulrich and Patrick Burke, to be her next-to-children. Dr. Janne Bowen-Williams was another member of her "family-by-choice." She was never happier than when talking to or about her grandchildren, Ben Quigley and his partner Laura Graham Holmes, Tom Quigley, Peter Quigley, Catherine Quigley, Betsy Keene, and Grace Rogers, and her great-granddaughters, Sophie and Leah Quigley.
Her dearest wish was to thank the Almighty for sending us J.S. Bach. Now she has her chance.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by & on Dec. 26, 2021.

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Sponsored by Cremation Society of the Carolinas/Capital Funeral Home - Raleigh.

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2 Entries

Shawn Trimble

January 7, 2022

What a beautiful life...thank you for remembering your mom in such an uplifting way. I could feel her spirit. Sending my sincere condolences to each and every one of you.
With Love,
Shawn Trimble (from ERUUF)

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To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.

Funeral services provided by:

Cremation Society of the Carolinas/Capital Funeral Home - Raleigh

2205 East Millbrook Road, Raleigh, NC 27604

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