Ruby J. Austin, age 79, of Elizabethton, passed away Saturday, October 22, 2011 in the Johnson City Medical Center. A native of Lee County, VA, she was a daughter of the late Monroe and Vival Estep Smith.
Mrs. Austin was a very outgoing person who had a true love for life. She and her husband were avid bowlers, and she had played on three league teams. Later in her life, she continued her passion of bowling by playing her opponents on the Nintendo Wii game system in which she normally won. Ruby was a member of Pleasant Beach Baptist Church.
In addition to her parents, Mrs. Austin was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph C. Austin, Sr. (1997), and two brothers. She is survived by five children, Joseph C. Austin, Jr. and wife, Mary Ann, of Madison, VA, Jean A. Wilson and husband, Jeff, Elizabethton, Verna A. Stacks and husband, Fred, of Kernersville, NC, Glenda K. Williams and husband, Richard, Elizabethton, and Richie L. Austin of Indiana; eleven grandchildren, Randy Lewis, Jr., Victoria Maschino, Joseph C. Austin, III, James A. Austin, Mary Elisabeth Austin, Charles Thomas Stacks, Aileen Elizabeth Stacks, Richard Shane Williams, Heather Williams, Monroe S. Austin, and Caleb Austin; thirteen great-grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren; eight brothers and sisters, Harold Dean Smith, Liberty, IN, Mary Hester Hatton, Oxford, OH, Vivian Doris Merritt, AR, James Odell Smith, College Corner, IN, Rose Ann Bowling, Johnson City, Phillip Ray Smith, Oxford, OH, Joseph Wayne Smith, Batesville, IN, and Joyce Elaine Burkhart, Lily, KY. Several nieces and nephews also survive.
The funeral service for Ruby J. Austin will be conducted at 7:00 P.M. Tuesday, October 25, 2011 in the Sunset Chapel of Hathaway-Percy Funeral and Cremation Services with her son, Pastor Joseph C. Austin, Jr. and Rev. Charles Biggs officiating. The family will receive friends from 4:00 to 7:00 P.M. Tuesday in the funeral home chapel prior to the service. A private graveside service will be held in the Happy Valley Memorial Park. Active pallbearers will be Joseph C. Austin, III, James A. Austin, Richard Shane Williams, Randy Lewis, Jr., Charles Thomas Stacks, Bobby Ray Bowling, Gebe Ritchie, and Kevin Bowling.
Condolences may be sent to the family and viewed by visiting our website at www.hathawaypercy.com. Hathaway-Percy Funeral and Cremation Services is serving the family of Mrs. Austin. Office: 543-5544.
