Vivian Irene Webster died Saturday, February 1, 2020.
She was born to John and Mabel (Eshelman) Rudkin on September 20, 1920, in Sparta. Vivian was the oldest of six children: brothers, Kenneth, Raymond, and Richard; and sisters, Beatrice and Janet. She graduated from Sparta High School in 1938, where she was very active socially, a practice she carried on throughout all of her 99+ years.
In 1939, she met Harold Webster and they married on March 23, 1940; attended by their dear friends, Ray Jensen and Lillian Larson. The couple had one daughter, Janice (Yourell) on March 20, 1942. They lived on a farm in Pine Grove until the fall of 1942, and then moved to Black Valley near Wilton. In 1947, the family moved from their farm in Black Valley to the family farm near Angelo, on which Vivian lived until 2013. She spent the final years of her life in Morrow Home Community, where she enjoyed the company of many friends, both old and new.
Active in her Homemakers club for many years, Vivian was an intuitive and expert baker of pies, cookies, and all manner of delights that could never be replicated in quality by even the world’s most highly-skilled pastry chefs. Once, when asked for the secret to her recipes and cooking methods, Vivian replied, “Oh, I don’t know; I just dump it all together and it usually turns out all right.”
Vivian was also an avid card player who enjoyed her couples card club with friends and family. She will be remembered as a conversationalist. Her passion for sociability was well-known, and she considered strangers merely friends she hadn’t yet met. She loved to spend hours visiting and socializing with any and all people, and her heart capacious and accepting of everyone. Whether you knew Vivian for a minute or a lifetime, she would go out of her way to make you feel welcome, comfortable, and accepted.
She and Harold spent their 46 years together balancing working hard on the family farm with traveling to see friends, going fishing, or attending baseball games. Later in their lives together, they also went on long trips to the western United States to visit relatives and sightsee. After Harold’s death in 1986, she continued to travel in the U.S., and collect experiences, memories, and new friends.
Vivian is survived by her daughter, Janice and son-in-law, Joe; granddaughters, Lisa (David) Gaunky and Ann Yourell (Steve Sharp); grandsons, David (Donna) Yourell and Patrick Yourell; nine great-grandchildren; five great-great-grandchildren; sister, Janet (Ralph) Hendersin; brothers, Raymond Rudkin and Richard (Elaine) Rudkin; numerous nieces and nephews; as well as her countless friends.
Harold preceded her in death, along with brother, Kenneth (Kathleen); and sister, Beatrice (first husband, Francis Ciaramitaro and second husband, Darold Tenner); Anna Belle Rudkin, Lawrence (Agnes) Webster, Robert (Dorothy) Webster, and Ruth (Leo) Protz.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, February 8, 2020, at Lanham-Schanhofer Funeral Home, Sparta, with Reverend Loretta Waughtal officiating. Burial will be at a later time in Woodlawn Cemetery, Sparta. Family and friends are invited to call from 9 a.m. until time of services on Saturday at the funeral home. The Lanham-Schanhofer Funeral Home, Sparta, is assisting the family with arrangements.
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