Ruth A. Danforth
Mrs. Ruth A. Danforth, 81, beloved
grandmother of Sarah and Elizabeth Cornacchio, died peacefully on Sunday
March 4, 2012, surrounded by her family at the Kaplan House.
Born in Arlington, she was the
daughter of the late John and Margaret (O’Brien) Erickson. She graduated
from Arlington High School and received her bachelor’s degree in
psychology from Boston University. Many years later Ruth balanced family
and career to earn a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from
Bridgewater State College.
After her marriage to Otis R.
Danforth, Jr., her husband of 44 years, Mrs. Danforth began her
professional career in Minnesota as Northwest Orient Airlines’ first
female Control Agent responsible for tracking passenger and freight
reservations. She later helped establish one of the first Forestry Camps
for delinquent boys in Pennsylvania and worked counseling and testing
teenaged boys who had been court committed as delinquent. After
returning to Massachusetts, Mrs. Danforth worked as a psychological
assistant at M.C.I. Bridgewater State Hospital, administering objective
psychological tests that were used by clinicians for diagnostic
purposes.
Mrs. Danforth was an elementary
school teacher and later worked for several years as a guidance
counselor in the Bridgewater School Department. She embraced the
introduction of computer technology in education and also taught
computer courses at Bridgewater State College. She served on several
town government committees in Raynham and was a past chairman of the
Taunton State Hospital Board of Trustees and the Raynham Historical
Society.
Ruth was an avid mystery reader and
licensed antique dealer. She loved planning antiquing missions across
New England with her friends. She also loved classical music and passed
this love on to her granddaughters. She was deeply involved in their
young lives and supported her daughter as she began her own professional
life.
Ruth was predeceased by her daughter
Diane and her younger brother John Erickson. She is survived by her
younger sister Joan MacDonald of Andover. She also leaves her daughter
Susan and her husband Thomas Cornacchio and her two beloved
granddaughters, Sarah and Elizabeth Cornacchio of Ipswich.
Her funeral service will be held 11
am Friday, March 9, in the Whittier-Porter Funeral Home, 6 High Street,
Ipswich, preceded by an hour of visitation from 10 to 11 am. Family and
friends are respectfully welcomed. Interment will be in the Lakeview
Cemetery, Freedom, NH. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to
Hospice of the North Shore & Greater Boston, 75 Sylvan Street, Suite
B-102, Danvers, MA 01923.
