Florence Audrey Lawrence Ransom, 87, passed away on April 9, 2012 at the Jennersville Regional Hospital, Jennersville, PA.

Audrey was born in 1924 in Pittsburgh, PA to Charles and Florence Lawrence. She attended West View High School, was a member of the National Honor Society, and in 1941 matriculated at Margaret Morrison College of Carnegie Institute of Technology where she served as president of her sorority, Delta Delta Delta. In 1944 she took time off from her studies to work at a research laboratory, where she met John (Jack) T. Ransom, an engineering graduate student, who was smitten by her long legs, warmth and intelligence. They were married in 1945 in West View. Audrey graduated in 1946 with a bachelor's degree in General Studies.

Upon Jack's acceptance of a position with the DuPont Co., the couple moved to Delaware in 1948, eventually settling in Yorklyn, where they raised three children and a multitude of pets on two acres of beautiful property in the rural hills. Audrey was a 26 year employee of Winterthur Museum, retiring in 1989 as a Senior Guide specializing in Pennsylvania German decorative arts and oriental rugs. She learned American Sign Language to benefit her visitors and was a member of the International Hajji Baba Society and the Textile Museum of Washington, DC. She and Jack traveled throughout the USA, Europe, the Soviet Union, Siberia, Outer Mongolia, Kazakstan and Uzbekistan. As a couple, they were avid hikers, visiting many National Parks and sections of the Appalachian Trail from North Carolina to Maine. Audrey was a member of Choir of the Advent in Kennett Square, PA. She played piano, sang in the church choir and enjoyed symphony and opera. She loved clouds, sunsets, the night sky and a brisk walk. Audrey's inquisitive mind led her to attend the Academy of Lifelong Learning where she studied poetry and the origin of the universe.

Audrey is survived by her loving husband, Jack of Jenner's Pond Retirement Community; daughter Shirley Ransom (Amelia Bye) of Boston, MA; daughter Doris Roth (Gordon) of Hockessin, DE; son John Ransom (Sheila) of Encinitas, CA; sister Shirley Muddiman; grandson Ben Roth and Peter Roth (Valerie); and granddaughter Emma Ransom.

A Memorial Celebration will be held at 10:30 am on Saturday April 28, 2012 in the Allison Building at the Jenner's Pond Retirement Community, 2000 Greenbriar Lane, West Grove PA, 19390 followed by a reception in the dining room. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Benevolent Care Fund of Jenner's Pond may be sent to the above address to the attention of Diane Singley.