ORONO – Beth Musgrave Stout, 87, passed away peacefully Jan. 31, 2004, at a Bangor healthcare facility. Beth was born March 11, 1916, in Wyandot County, Ohio, the daughter of Ray and Verna (Wentling) Musgrave. She was a devoted and loving wife to her husband, George S. Stout and a dedicated and loving mother to two daughters, Lois Ann and Marybeth Stout Allen of Orono. Growing up on a busy Guernsey dairy farm, Beth often had to take charge and serve as the second mother to her four younger siblings. Beth lived her life as a steadfast Christian, whose faith in God never wavered. She me life’s challenges head-on, the most trying of which was the childhood death of her first born daughter, Lois Ann. Friends and family will remember her always as a person who embraced hard work and took delight in being constantly busy and productive. She was generous and always went out of her way to help others, had a wonderful sense of humor, and was always ready to laugh and smile. Beth will be missed and lovingly remembered by her family, her friends, and the most caring and devoted staff anywhere at Westgate Manor, where she had lived for the past seven years. Beth was predeceased by her husband, George, in 1985, after they shared 49 years of a loving and mutually supportive marriage; and by her oldest daughter, Lois Ann, who passed away in 1957 at the age of 12. Beth is survived by her remaining daughter, Marybeth and her son-in-law, Robert P. Allen, of Orono; two sisters, Audrey Lawrence of Clemson, S.C., and Ruth Schwonberg of Dade City, Fla.; two brothers, Donald Kent Musgrave of Port Charlotte, Fla., and Bard Musgrave of Mount Victory, Ohio; four grandchildren and their families, Benjamin Stuart Allen and his wife, Kimberly, and great-grandchildren, Erik and Teddy of Litchfield, N.H.; Rebecca Hathaway Allen and her husband, Guido Malpartida of Cambridge, Mass.; Daniel Clinton Allen of St. Paul, Minn.; and Josiah Paul Allen of Rochester, N.Y. Beth graduated from Wharton High School (Richland Township, Ohio) in 1933, and from the International Business College of Fort Wayne, Ind., in 1936. She worked as secretary and bookkeeper in Fort Wayne until her marriage to George later that year. Beth and George then settled in Jeannette, Pa., where they raised their family. In the early 1960s, Beth returned to work as secretary to the United Church of Christ in Greensburg, Pa. After the family moved to the Philadelphia area in 1966, Beth worked as an administrative assistant to the Synnesvedt Insurance Agency in Jenkintown, Pa., and then as administrative assistant for the Methodist Action Program in Wilmington, Del. Beth and George retired to Tranquility Falls in Newfoundland, Pa., where they built their retirement home “Hap-e-day” and spent many wonderful years together. After George’s passing, Beth moved to Orono, where she lived near her remaining daughter, Marybeth, before becoming a resident of Westgate Manor. Beth was a lifelong active member of the United Methodist Church, wherever she lived and was a ready and willing worker for many church related projects and missions. One of her most fulfilling volunteer roles was a Girl Scout Leader and then as president of the Westmoreland Girl Scout Council in Pennsylvania. Graveside memorial services will be held in Delmont, Pa., at a future date. Those who wish to contribute to her memory may send donations to the Activity Fund of Westgate Manor, 750 Union St., Bangor, Me 04401 or to the United Methodist Commission on Relief (UMCOR), Room 330, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115. A service of Brookings-Smith, LaBeau Chapel, 72 Main St., Orono, ME 04473.
BETH MUSGRAVE STOUT
