Marjorie Reese Ludlow, an active member of the Bridgehampton community and its Methodist Church, and a Southampton Hospital volunteer for more than three decades, died last Thursday at her Bridgehampton home. She was 101.
Born on Jan. 12, 1918, to Arthur Mesier Reese and the former Harriet Smith, Ms. Ludlow, one of three children, was raised in Yonkers and attended grade and high school there.
During her childhood, Ms. Ludlow’s father built a cottage in Jamesport, where the family spent many summers. It was there the Reese family met the Ludlow family. Marjorie Reese and Gurden Pierson Ludlow were married in 1948 and made their home in Bridgehampton.
Her family said Ms. Ludlow was quick to make friends. She and her husband enjoyed ballroom dancing and playing bridge, and Ms. Ludlow also enjoyed opera, quilting, and staying physically active, including swimming, walking, and yoga.
At the Bridgehampton Methodist Church, Ms. Ludlow sang in the choir and oversaw many strawberry festivals and turkey dinners. She volunteered in the admissions department of Southampton Hospital for 31 years, until 2013. She also was a member of the Choral Society of the Hamptons and the Daughters of the American Revolution. Family and friends remember her as an extraordinary cook who made glorious desserts.
Ms. Ludlow attended Wheaton College in Massachusetts, where she received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She subsequently worked as an administrative assistant for the Ethyl Corporation in New York City for seven years.
Mr. Ludlow died in 2001; her siblings, William H. Reese and Claire Reese Knight, died in 2006. Ms. Ludlow is survived by four children, Claire Ludlow Arnold of Littleton, Colo., Betsy Ludlow Johnsen of Wilbraham, Mass., and Harry S. Ludlow and Arthur R. Ludlow, both of Bridgehampton. Six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren also survive.
A funeral service will be held on Tuesday at the Bridgehampton Methodist Church at 11 a.m., with the Rev. W. Patrick Edwards officiating. Peter Ludlow, one of Ms. Ludlow’s grandchildren, will be the organist at the service. Burial will follow at Mecox Cemetery in Bridgehampton. The family has suggested memorial donations to the Peconic Land Trust, 296 Hampton Road, Southampton 11968, East End Hospice, P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach 11978, or Maureen’s Haven, 28 Lincoln Street, Riverhead 11901.