Caroline Whaley Weeks Batson

Caroline Whaley Weeks Batson
May 9, 1923 - December 20, 2020
Winston Salem, North Carolina - Caroline Whaley Weeks Batson. Born May 9, 1923, in Charlotte, she was the daughter of Leslie Devlin Weeks, Sr., and Sarah Caroline Whaley. Mrs. Batson, known as Whaley, graduated from Queens College in 1944 where she was a member of Alpha Gamma Delta sorority. She married William Culver Batson on March 21, 1948. Mrs. Batson loved to travel and was especially fond of the Carolina Low Country. A long-time resident of Winston-Salem, Mrs. Batson was a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and a founding member of Highland Presbyterian Church. She worked for Old Salem and the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts for 25 years. A respected researcher on early Southern art, she was the curator of an important exhibition and author of the accompanying catalog on the 18th century pastellist Henrietta Johnston as well as several articles on Southern painters. Mrs. Batson loved music and for many years supported and attended concerts by the Winston-Salem Symphony and Piedmont Chamber Singers, as well as performances by Piedmont Opera. Saturday afternoons often found her listening to Metropolitan Opera broadcasts, and woe be the child who interrupted a performance of Tristan und Isolde. Mrs. Batson died on December 20, 2020, from complications of dementia and coronavirus. She was predeceased by her parents, her husband, and her brother, L.D. Weeks, Jr. She is survived by her children: Caroline Whaley Batson, of Northampton, Massachusetts; Barbara Cecile Batson, of Richmond, Virginia; William Mitchell Batson and his wife, Bettina (Tina) Jeffers Batson, of Winston-Salem, and her grandchildren, William Douglas Batson and Julia Caroline Batson, also of Winston-Salem; as well as several nieces, nephews, and cousins. The family thanks the staff at Homestead Hills and particularly Holli Ward, of Age with Grace, for her love of and passionate advocacy for their mother. Interment will be private. A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be made in her memory to Crisis Control, Samaritan Ministries, or Highland Presbyterian Church.