Mary Elizabeth Reeves Moulton

Published 10:33 am Thursday, September 3, 2015

Funeral services for Mary Elizabeth Reeves Moulton are Saturday, Sept. 5, 2015, at 10:30 a.m. at Shady Grove Baptist Church and will lie in state from 10 until 10:30 a.m. with burial in the church cemetery. Riverwood Family Funeral Service is in charge of arrangements.

Visitation will be Friday, Sept. 4, 2015, from 5 until 7 p.m. at Riverwood Family Funeral Service.

Mrs. Moulton, 78, of Brookhaven, died Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015, at her residence. Mary Elizabeth was the daughter of John Henry and Mary Ethel Hickerson Reeves and was born Sept. 10, 1936, in New Orleans, Louisiana.

It is with great sadness that the family and friends of Mary Elizabeth Reeves Moulton share with you the passing of their loved one and friend.

She grew up in the Ruth community participating in 4-H, graduated from Ruth High School, and continued on to Mississippi College where she met Ron and fell in love.  They married on June 3, 1958 at Shady Grove Baptist Church.  Mary Elizabeth served faithfully by Ron’s side as he attend seminary and engaged in church youth and music ministry in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida.
Mary Elizabeth taught school in Enterprise; Houma, Louisiana; and Lake Worth, Florida guiding and encouraging students.  More importantly, she taught by her example both inside and outside the classroom.  Mary Elizabeth was particularly fond of teaching fifth grade at Enterprise and considered it important that her students learn to play baseball and chess in addition to standard classes.  While teaching at John I. Leonard she and Ron were deeply devoted to the students by partnering together as score keepers at basketball games, class sponsors and a great source of encouragement to their students.
Many are surprised to learn of her hidden talent as a seamstress. Two of her more accomplished pieces of work are her daughters’ wedding dresses, which she designed herself.
After retirement, Ron and Mary Elizabeth traveled throughout the United States, often with a grandchild or two in tow.  She loved having her grandchildren as much as possible on any of their journeys and many fond memories were made.  Eventually, they returned to her family homestead near Ruth and built a home noted for its landscape and flowers.  Mary loved gardening and produced beautiful results from her diligent efforts to nurture plants.
Giving to the community, church and family were very important to Mary Elizabeth. More notably, Mary Elizabeth was a warm, encouraging, kind companion to women of the church.  Mary Elizabeth guided the WOM ministry, assisted in the church nursery, taught Sunday School on occasion and called upon women individually when they needed comfort or assistance. Amongst the many ways she cared for others was her devotion to caring for her mother, mother-in-law, and Ron as he fell to pancreatic cancer in his last days.   Lastly, she volunteered faithfully to hospice patients and families. Her motto in life could be summed up as “ministry in many little ways.”

Mary is preceded in death by her husband David “Ron” Moulton Sr.; and her parents John Henry and Mary Ethel Hickerson Reeves.

Mary Elizabeth is survived by her daughter Lavinia Kay Ricketts, her husband Jonathan Ricketts of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, her son David Ronald Moulton Jr. and his wife Tina Centofanti Moulton of Jupiter, Florida and his daughter Melissa Jane Bayley and her husband Todd Bayley of Land O’ Lakes, Florida. She had five grandchildren, Kimberly and David Ricketts, Brenna Moulton and Timothy and Jennifer Bayley.

To express your thoughts to the family, you may visit riverwoodfamily.com and click on her name to leave a comment.