Ruth Elizabeth Huston Calhoun
April 4, 1918 – June 1, 2013
On Saturday, June 1, 2013, Ruth Elizabeth Huston Calhoun passed peacefully from this life to the next. She had recently celebrated her 95th birthday and was living with a daughter and son-in-law in Maryville, Tenn.
Mrs. Calhoun was preceded in death by her husband of 71 years, John C. Calhoun Jr.; a son, John Huston; parents Junius Denniston Huston and Emma Gault Huston; and a brother, Francis.
Surviving are three daughters and spouses, Emily Calhoun and Robert Kerr of Boulder, Colo., Mary Beth and Larry Towles of Maryville and Ruth Ellen and David Whitt of Texarkana, Texas; four granddaughters and spouses, Jenny and Greg Gideon, Erin Henneke, Carlynn and Geoffrey von Oeyen and Emmy and Josh Nesbit; 10 great-grandchildren, Jacob, Matthew, Anna, Joshua, Ellis, Jonathon, Elias, Caleb, Truett and John; and two beloved cousins, Jinny Walker and Betty McKnight.
Mrs. Calhoun was born April 4, 1918, in Washington County. Both of her parents’ families had immigrated there from Scotland prior to the Revolutionary War, and she grew up just “one or two farms away” from many of her relatives. Her childhood was spent on her family’s farm, and her early education was received in a small, rural schoolhouse. For high school, she traveled daily to attend Monongahela High School as a “tuition student” and eventually graduated valedictorian of her class.
She attended Pennsylvania State University, where she received her bachelor of arts degree. It was there that she met her future husband, John. They became life partners in raising four children, in travel throughout the world, in intellectual pursuits and in nurturing their family as it grew to include three sons-in-law, four granddaughters and spouses and 10 lively great-grandchildren.
The Calhouns lived in College Station, Texas, for more than 50 years. During that time, while her husband worked with Texas A&M, Mrs. Calhoun devoted herself to providing and supporting her children’s many pursuits, as well as being an active member of the community. She participated in numerous service groups, including the local chapter of PEO and as chapter president of American Association of University Women. She was an avid reader and – before Texas A&M became a co-educational institution – formed fast friendships and a readers’ group with women who shared her love of books, fiction and poetry. For decades, she regularly collaborated with her husband in preparing the many public speeches he was asked to deliver.
In her very busy life, Mrs. Calhoun made time to ensure that all of her children had opportunities to participate in many extracurricular activities. As her nest emptied and the university embraced women, she earned a master of arts degree in English literature from Texas A&M, along with the right to claim that she was the “only true Aggie” in the family. Her thesis on Willa Cather was published in 1968. Restricted from teaching at Texas A&M University, because of her husband’s position, she shared her love of learning over the years as a virtual scholar in residence for the many groups who called on her for speaking engagements.
She played the piano beautifully, and the family cherishes memories of the years of her accompaniments to her husband’s rich baritone and family choruses. She was an excellent seamstress who leaves many treasures of exquisite needlework and lovely dresses and costumes for generations of daughters and granddaughters. From chocolate chip cookies to grandmothering and beyond, everything she did embodied her belief that “any job worth doing is worth doing well.”
Her daughters and their families will remember Mrs. Calhoun as a wonderfully accomplished, brilliant, generous and loving soul, whose devotion to family and sense of fun will be lasting legacies. Although her capacity for short-term memories declined in recent years, she retained to the end her marvelously impish and sharply sophisticated sense of humor that delighted family and friends.
Many wonderful individuals attended graciously to Mrs. Calhoun’s needs during the final months of her life in both Texas and Tennessee.
Visitation will be from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday in Memorial Funeral Chapel, 2901 Texas Avenue South, College Station, and a celebration of Mrs. Calhoun’s life will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 8, in First Presbyterian Church Bryan, 1100 Carter Creek Parkway. Interment will follow in the original College Station Cemetery, 2530 Texas Avenue South. Friends and family are invited to all gatherings. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in memory of Ruth Elizabeth Huston Calhoun, to the historic Revolutionary-era Mingo Creek Presbyterian Church, 561 Mingo Church Road, Finleyville, PA, 15332. A reception will be held at the funeral home following interment after the service information.