Rita E. Doutt

Rita E. Doutt, age 99, a life-long resident of Dover, passed away Tuesday, October 11, 2016, in Union Hospital at Dover, following a brief illness.

Born April 19, 1917, at Dover, she was a daughter of the late John and Elizabeth Weigand Ziegler. Rita graduated in 1934 from Dover's St. Joseph High School she was the high school's oldest living graduate. She married C. Ralph "Bud" Doutt on August 12, 1940. The couple reared two children and shared nearly 48 years of marriage prior to Bud's passing on March 9, 1988. Rita retired from the J.C. Penney Co. at Dover.

She was a faithful member of St. Joseph Church at Dover, where she was an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, volunteered visiting nursing homes, belonged to the Bereavement Ministry, L.C.B.A. and Loyola Study Group. Rita also enjoyed playing bridge and was a member of several card clubs.

Survivors include her daughter, Rebecca Ann (Jack) Evans of Norman, Oklahoma; her son, John R. (Sandy) Doutt of Hilliard; her grandchildren, Scott (Tenika) Evans, Stacy (Jeremy) Stout, Michael (Melissa) Doutt, Janna (Grant) Gardner, Julie Walters and Matthew (Stephanie) Doutt; her great-grandchildren, Jordan, Jacie, and Jessika Evans, Savannah and Caleb Doutt, Gwendolyn Bettger, Sydney and Savanna Stout, Bree Gardner, Jacob and Nicholas Doutt; her sister-in-law, Ann Youmans; and her many nieces and nephews.

Besides her parents, and her husband, Bud, Rita was preceded in death by her sisters, Esther Major, Fritz Shroyer, Margaret Ziegler and Helen Horning; her brothers, Paul, Herman, John and James Ziegler.

Family and friends are invited to call at the Toland-Herzig Funeral Home & Crematory, Dover, on Monday, October 17, 9:45 10:45 a.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 11 a.m., in St. Joseph Church, with Fr. Jimmy Hatfield officiating. Burial will be in St. Joseph Calvary Cemetery, Dover. After the committal, there will be luncheon in St. Joseph's Family Life Center. To sign an online guestbook and share a fond memory of Rita, please visit the Obituaries and Flowers link on the funeral home's website.

The family suggests that contributions in Rita's memory be made to St. Joseph Church, 613 N. Tuscarawas Ave., Dover, Ohio 44622.