Ruth Odelle Hudson Corwith, a longtime resident of Southampton Village, died on May 13 at her Peconic Landing home in Greenport. She was 95.
Known fondly as Odelle, but sometimes called Ruth, she was an independent-minded woman with great courage, family members said. She left rural North Carolina at the age of 16 in the midst of the Great Depression and traveled north with a small suitcase and $100, which she borrowed from a friend. She enrolled in the Southampton Hospital School of Nursing and graduated in 1935. She went on to become head operating room nurse and an instructor of nursing at Southampton Hospital.
In 1939 she married Foster Howell Corwith, a Southampton Village resident whose ancestors were among those who first settled Southampton as an English colony. While raising three children, she was involved in community affairs, including church and civic activities. Later, when her children were older, she worked as an instructor in the biology department at Southampton College. In addition, she was an enthusiastic sportswoman throughout much of her lifetime.
In 2002, she moved with her husband to the newly opened Peconic Landing retirement community.
According to family, she was a giving, caring and loyal human being who instilled and encouraged values of the highest order. Her sense of humor was woven through her philosophy of life and demonstrated daily, and was frequently mentioned by her many friends and family as one of her most endearing traits.
She is survived by her two daughters, Jane Hudson Corwith of Hampton Bays and Nancy Foster Corwith of Virginia; a son, Foster Howell Corwith II of California; and three grandchildren. Her husband of 65 years predeceased her in 2004.
A private memorial is set to be held this summer. Correspondence with the family may be addressed to Jane Hudson Corwith, 9 Wooded Lane, Hampton Bays, NY 11946.
on May 20, 2009