Avis de décès de Elizabeth-Hilbish Morris - Nécrologie - MesAieux.com

TUSCALOOSA Elizabeth Hilbish Morris, age 94, of Tuscaloosa, was born Nov. 4, 1913, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. She died Oct. 21, 2008, at Hospice of West Alabama. Graveside services will be 11 a.m. today at Evergreen Cemetery with Ron Wilson officiating.Mrs. Morris was preceded in death by her husband, Charles N. Morris; her parents, W. A. and Mattie Oswalt Hilbish; her brothers, Wilbert Fitts Hilbish and Charles Kelly Hilbish, Sr.; her sister, Alva Hilbish Bassett; her nephews, Charles Kelly Hilbish, Jr. and Charles Tomkins Bassett; her great-niece, Charlotte Gail Golson; and her great-nephew, Charles Kelly Hilbish, III.Survivors include nieces, Ann Hilbish Herrington, Nancy Hilbish Miksell, Charlotte Hilbish Golson, Mary Bassett Stark, and Elizabeth Bassett Duffy; nephews, James Newman Hilbish, Norman Howard Bassett, and William Thomas Bassett; and their families.Mrs. Morris was born the daughter of W. A. Hilbish, who opened the first Ford Motor Company in Tuscaloosa and the Hilbish Bicycle Shop. During high school she worked at Hilbish's Sporting Goods Store, her father's retail store, selling RCA Victrolas and recordings. She was educated in the Tuscaloosa City Schools and graduated from Tuscaloosa High School in 1932, and The University of Alabama in 1938 with a Music Education degree. During her college years she was an active member of the UA Wesley Foundation, a United Methodist Student Cam-pus Organization, and was the only female member of Pi Tau Chi, Alpha Alpha Chapter, an honorary religious society. She also enjoyed singing with the various ensembles and participating in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas. She taught piano lessons to help pay for her education. Following graduation, she worked for the WPA in Sumter County, taught choral music in Altoona and Etowah County, Ala.; Louisville, Ky.; Clarksville, Tenn.; and Ocean Springs, Miss.She met and married her husband Charles N. Morris just six months after their first date, while she was program director for the USO in Etowah County, Ala. during World War II. During the war, she and her husband moved from Alabama to Kentucky to Tennessee and to Mississippi from Army base to Army base. Although times were not always easy, she often talked of these days as the best.After the war they resided in Gadsden, Ala., where they owned and operated The Gadsden Letter Shop. Mrs. Morris continued teaching choral music and participating in continuing education workshops and studies. They also resided in Richmond, Virginia where they were associated with the Presbyterian Board of Christian Education, and she taught choral music and piano.Mrs. Morris returned to Tuscaloosa in 1973. She was a lifelong learner and in 1986 began continuing education studies at Shelton State Community College. Through the Adult Studies Program she wrote and published several genealogical and historical books about Tuscaloosa and her family. She was a member of the Tuscaloosa Music Club, The Tuscaloosa Civic Chorus, The Tuscaloosa Genealogical Society, and The First United Methodist Church. "Liba", as she was affectionately known, was an avid Alabama football fan who knew how to celebrate life.Honorary pallbearers will be former members of the Tuscaloosa Civic Chorus.In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The University of Alabama Wesley Foundation, and to Hospice of West Alabama.