Elizabeth Ann Sparrow Ayres' Obituary
Elizabeth Ann Sparrow Ayres died on Monday, December 2, 2024, in Gainesville, FL. Mrs. Ayres was born in Washington, DC on April 21, 1944, and grew up in Jacksonville, NC. She attended Georgetown University where she met Stephen Ayres. They were married in Washington on June 11, 1966.
While in Washington she was active in the Friendship-Tenleytown Citizens' Association, Don't Tear It Down, the DC Citizens' Zoning Coalition, the Friendship Neighborhood Coalition and St. Ann's Catholic Church. She and her husband began and ran a 1,000-household neighborhood crime watch program which became a model for other programs in the city and for which Mr. Ayres was awarded a commendation from the District of Columbia. They moved to Gainesville in 1984. Mrs. Ayres was a founding member and historian of the Children’s Home Society's Gainesville Auxiliary. She was one of the organizers and president for many years of the Wood Creek Neighborhood Association, a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy and a member of Holy Faith Catholic Church since 1985.
She was predeceased by her husband in 2004 and is survived by her brother-in-law Joseph F. Ayres and sister-in-law Joyce A. Ayres of East Lyme, CT, her niece Laura G. Ayres and grand-niece Alivia B. Holmes both of Miller Place, NY.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Friday, December 13, 2024, at 11AM at Holy Faith Catholic Church 747 NW 43rd St., Gainesville FL. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service. The family is encouraging flowers be sent.
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