Obituary

Ardythe E. Petersen (January 15, 1930 - October 11, 2011 ) Ardythe (Ekdahl) Petersen went to be with her Lord and Savior October 11, 2011 at her home in Colorado Springs, CO. Ardythe is survived by her husband of 58 years, William J. Petersen, two sons and a daughter. Son Kenneth Petersen and his wife Rita live in Colorado Springs; son Randy Petersen lives in Westville, NJ; and daughter Kathryn Petersen and her husband Christopher Colucci live in Philadelphia. Ardythe is also survived by her sister Marguerite Whiteford and her husband Lawrence of Pekin, IL. Ardythe was born January 15, 1930 in Evanston, IL to Arthur and Olga Ekdahl. Her mother died shortly after Ardythe's birth so she was raised by Elmer and Wilma Ekdahl, her uncle and aunt. She grew up on a farm outside Aurora (IL), graduated from Naperville (IL) High School, attended Asbury College (Wilmore, KY) and graduated from Wheaton (IL) College in 1951 with a double major in Literature and Education. She took graduate work at Northwestern University and later at Rowan University in New Jersey. She taught high school in Fulton, IL before she married Bill Petersen in 1952. They lived in Elmhurst, Wheaton and Glen Ellyn (IL), before moving east to Ridley Park and Woodlyn, PA. Then they moved to Woodbury Heights (NJ). When the children were all in school, she resumed her teaching career and taught in the Monongahela Public School system for twenty years. After her retirement from teaching, she and Bill moved to Montvale, NJ, and then to Grand Rapids, MI. When Bill retired from publishing, they returned to Pennsylvania, first to Chester Springs and then to Elverson. Then when they sought a retirement community, they moved to Colorado Springs, near Ken and Rita, and settled in Palisades of Broadmoor. Here on earth we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come (Hebrews 13:13) Ardythe was active in church work as a teacher, choir member, and deacon. Each summer she looked forward to family vacations in New England. She enjoyed watercolor and oil painting as an adult. She enjoyed travel with her husband, and when he led tours to Europe, she was the co-guide. She also assisted Bill in the writing of some of his books. For ten years she served as caregiver for Bill's mother.