Roberta B. Morris

Roberta Botvin Morris, age 68, passed away at the Hock Family Pavilion of Duke Hospice on Sunday, September 12, 2010.
Born and raised in Providence, RI, she received her BA in English from Tufts University and her MAT in Education and English from Rhode Island College. She lived in Manhattan, Rhode Island, rural Massachusetts, lower Westchester and suburban New Jersey before moving to Chapel Hill. Over the course of her career, she taught English, owned a small ad agency, created and managed websites, and engaged in social activism, but was at heart a freelance journalist and copywriter. Prior to her illness, she was a fundraiser for the Jewish Heritage Foundation of North Carolina. When she was no longer able to work outside her home, she became the content manager of CollectiveX, a web platform for online collaboration and team-building, and volunteered as a member of the Obama campaign’s Rapid Response Team. In her personal time, she was an avid gardener and enjoyed boating and music.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Dr. Morris Botvin, and Eleanor Rose Fishman Botvin, as well as her brother-in-law, Dr. Barry Margolin of Chapel Hill, and her beloved cat, Wink.
Mourners include her sister, Connie Margolin of Chapel Hill; niece, Lauren Margolin of Macungie, Pennsylvania; cousin, Leonard Sydney of New York City; many cousins in Rhode Island, and friends and neighbors.
The family wishes to thank Nancy Walker and other neighbors at Colony Lake in Chapel Hill, Reuben Press of Durham, members of Beth El Congregation, and the wonderful staff of Duke Hospice for their kindness and assistance during her illness.
A graveside ceremony will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Monday, September 13, 2010 at the Durham Hebrew Cemetery at Morehead Avenue and Kent Street.
The family will receive visitors at Roberta's home in Chapel Hill.
Contributions may be sent to The ICF Small Items Fund, Duke Homecare and Hospice, 4321 Medical Park Drive, Durham NC, 27704; to the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, CB #7295, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7295; and to Beth El Congregation, 1004 Watts Street, Durham, 27701.
Howerton & Bryan Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.
Online condolences may be sent to www.howertonbryan.com; select obituaries.