Audrey Ayers Burgess
Audrey Ayers Burgess of Westhampton and formerly of Montclair, New Jersey, died on June 5 at the Peabody Home in New Hampshire. She was 96.
Born November 30, 1913, in Port Jervis, New York, to Joseph G. Ayers and Alice (née Vance) Ayers, she was the granddaughter of U.S. Navy Admiral Joseph G. Ayers and Olinda Ayers.
She was employed at the investment firm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. and worked in the Newark, New Jersey court system. She was also employed at several Westhampton retail stores over the years. She frequently volunteered for the American Red Cross, Bideawee of Westhampton and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church thrift shop in Westhampton Beach.
According to her family, she was an avid tennis player as a young woman and at 18 years old she ranked 14th in the nation in women’s tennis. She and her partner Josephine Merrick also went on to win a New Jersey women’s doubles championship.
She is survived by a son, New Hampshire State Representative Frank Tupper of New Hampshire; two grandsons, Glenn Ayers Tupper of Minnesota and Zachariah Ayers Tupper of Colorado; and a great-granddaughter, Skylar Tupper of Minnesota.
A memorial service will be held Friday, July 16, at 11 a.m., at the Westhampton Presbyterian Church on Meetinghouse Road in Westhampton Beach.
In lieu of flowers, donations to the Peabody Home, care of Meg Miller, 24 Peabody Place, Franklin, New Hampshire 03235 would be appreciated by the family.