Rita’s Obituary Rita Elizabeth Lyman Roberson, 84, of Walkesville, died on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Frederick Memorial Hospital. She was born in Wallingford, Connecticut on July 18, 1934; and was raised in Wallingford, where she graduated from Lyman Hall High School in 1952. While growing up in Wallingford, her parents, Burton Clinton & Mazie Edythe Simmons Lyman, she and her sister, Judy, were active in the Wallingford Advent Christian Church.
Rita went to college at Aurora University, Aurora, IL, which was an Advent Christian School of higher education, where she received the Gold Ivy Leaf award for scholarship. She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Education in 1956, and throughout her college years, spent many months teaching and student working in the poorest areas of Appalachia, including Kentucky and Tennessee. Following her graduation from college, she taught elementary school in Yalesville.
In 1957, she met John, whom was a friend of her sister Judy’s fiancé, William Willard. John & Bill were serving together in the Air Force, stationed in Thule, Greenland. John & Rita were married on May 27, 1958, at the Advent Christian Church.
They located to Frederick after he was discharged, and lived there, before returning to be close to her family in Wallingford. She and John had four sons, one almost every other year, beginning in 1960. Rita was a devoted mother and homemaker to her husband and sons and from a very early time guided them with a strong belief in God, and the church.
As a young mother with four sons, she didn’t have much free time, but found enough time to pursue her love of baking and was often decorating cakes and other items, late into the night. As her sons grew older, she was active in Scouting with them, and served as a Den, Pack and later, Troop leader for not only her sons, but many young men and guided them through their adolescent years. In the late 1960’s, with four sons at home and in school, John was unable to work in the steel manufacturing industry, which thrived in the area of Connecticut, so Mom returned to a professional career, and taught in schools in Wallingford, including Dag Hammarskjold Middle School for several years.
They eventually decided to return to John’s home here in Maryland, and moved to Walkersville in Sept 1974. The home they purchased on Main Street, with an expansive yard allowed her to garden and plant many native flowers and herbs, and led to her earliest venture into business, which was called “Rita’s Rosemary & Rue”, a little herb shoppe she operated out of John’s shed. She also continued to bake and decorate cakes and pastries for many family members and friends in the area.
She is a noted Wedding Cake designer, and until recently, enjoyed sharing her baking talents with family. Her family began attending Walkersville United Methodist Church, where she began actively working in church programs. Within the Church, she served in many capacities including Sunday school teacher, constant choir member since 1974, member of the Administrative Board and Council of Ministries, United Methodist Women and as a Stephen Ministry leader and Disciple teacher.
The Prayer Shawl Group and being facilitator of the Prayer Tree Ministry of the church were special to her in later years. She has also actively worked with almost every committee of the church, as well as committees outside the local church. For many years, Rita served as secretary of the Baltimore-Washington Conference of United Methodist Churches.
In the mid-1970’s, following the influx of Vietnamese refugees to this country, our home was opened to a very special couple, that lived with us and shared in Rita’s love for several years. This Viet couple were nurtured by Rita, as she spent many hours in the evening and night, teaching them English, and about our society. She was so proud of both, as they eventually learned English, graduated from GED programs, went on to college and succeeded in both professional and personal careers.
We will always remember, Mom teaching the young Vietnamese girl to cook hamburgers, “cause we have a houseful of hungry boys”, and this young girl, saying, in very broken English, “No, No! ! !
We cook Minh Soup”, much better for them”. . We all learned to enjoy “Minh Soup”.
She loved Hop and Tu Ha. The many trips, delivering us to different ball fields, programs and events would have been more than most bus drivers are subjected to in their careers. While we were in school, Mom would always have activities to pursue, whether they were Church related, or involved the community.
She was actively involved in the Walkersville Community Ambulance Company, and was a founding, active charter member, and currently a life member of the Walkersville Volunteer Rescue Company. She served on the Board of the Ambulance Company for years, and had her Emergency Medical Technician training, and ran ambulance calls during the day in the infancy of the company and was Member of the Year in the early 1980’s. She worked with Frances Lynch at Creative Corner, Walkersville, and was administrative assistant for the Maryland Christmas Show for its first five years.
Rita later took some medical classes through the College, and began her “second” professional career, and worked at Frederick Memorial Hospital as a unit clerk and trainer on the 2A Hospice unit and retired from the hospital after serving as office manager at the Regional Cancer Therapy Center IV department from its inception until 1998. She really enjoyed working in the center and developed many close relationships with many of the terminally ill patients that came to the center. This led her to become a volunteer with Hospice of Frederick County, where she attended the care giver program, and spent hundreds of hours volunteering with patients and families.
After she retired from the hospital in 1998, she continued her volunteer work with Hospice, but most enjoyed spending time with Dad, whom had retired from the Town of Walkersville, a few years before. Rita may have retired from the “working” ranks, but she in no way, slowed in her volunteer activities, as she is actively involved also a member and officer of Walkersville Homemakers, Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County, Church Women United of Frederick County, the Ladies of the Club Book group, and taught several classes with the Frederick School of Religion for years. She loved music, painting, reading, scrapbooking and all kinds of crafts and handwork including knitting hats for newborn babies at Frederick Memorial Hospital.
She was always the gracious host and loved family gatherings and holidays, which she spent countless hours baking and cooking all of the traditional family dishes. Her home was always a welcome place for family and her friends. Whether regular potluck dinners, patting oysters for church dinners or selling tickets for the annual carnival rides, she enjoyed helping others.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by four sons: John David Roberson, of Walkersville and fiancé Cheryl of Frederick, Keith Lyman Roberson and wife Myla Gordon Roberson of Frederick, Bruce Leo Roberson and wife Cathy Stotler Roberson of Frederick and Michael James Roberson and wife Karla Roberson of New Market; five grandsons, Matthew Stotler, Zachary Roberson, Joel Roberson, Benjamin Roberson and Joshua Roberson; five granddaughters, Devin Roman and husband, Taylor, Rebecca Roberson and fiancé, Larry Anderson, Julia Roberson and Sydney Roberson; three great-grandchildren, Christian, Kaylee and Lucas. She is also survived by a sister, Judith M. Willard and husband Wesley (Bill) of Dowling Park, Florida and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her parents, her daughter-in-law Marcia Baker Roberson and one granddaughter, Hannah Gordon Roberson.
The family will receive friends from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9pm on Friday, March 1 at Keeney & Basford Funeral Home, 106 East Church Street, Frederick. Private graveside services will be held at Glade Cemetery, Walkersville. A Service in Celebration of her life will be held at 4pm on Saturday, March 2 at the Walkersville United Methodist Church, 22 Main Street, Walkersville.
The Rev. Mike Henning will officiate. In lieu of flowers, the family suggest memorial donations to the Walkersville Volunteer Rescue Company, Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County, Hospice or the charity of one’s choice.
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