Beverly Ragsdale Succumbs to Cancer
September 19, 1939 - September 9, 2007
By Ruth Lepper

To say that Beverly Ragsdale was an active member of the community is an understatement. She thrived on her community involvement and often referred to Ramona as her "second hometown."

Ragsdale, 67, died Sept. 9 following complications from cancer. Family and friends paid tribute to Ragsdale at a memorial service on Sept. 13 at Mountain View Community Church. A private burial service was held on Sept. 12 at Nuevo Memory Gardens.

The list of Ragsdale's community activities is endless. Her passion belonged to Ramona Town Hall. She was president of the Town Hall Board of Directors for many years and headed the movement for the restoration of the historic building, an ongoing project that has been left unfinished.

"She was always busy, always on the run," reminisced her son, Kenny Ragsdale, of Ramona, adding that his mother was always there for her family and after that, it was "town hall, town hall, town hall."

She started the honorary mayor contest around 1990 as a fundraiser for the Town Hall. As another fundraiser, she organized street fairs for several years.

Ragsdale was a member of the Kiwanis Club of Ramona, serving as its first woman president in 2000. She was the recipient of the George F. Hixon Fellowship Award, an international honor, presented to her family on Sept. 8 at the club's annual installation dinner.

Ragsdale also was presented with the club's Appreciation Award in January 2005. A scholarship will be designated by the local club in Ragsdale's memory.

She was one of the founders of Ramona Pet Awareness League, helping to find homes and provide needed medical services for cats and dogs.

"She was always taking in strays - animals and kids," said her daughter, Denise Sothman of Ramona. "She was always a giver; she never wanted anything in return. She never wanted anyone to do anything for her. She was just always a giver."

Ragsdale served in an elected capacity on the Ramona Community Planning Group and was its secretary for a term.

Her other activities included: president of City of Ramona NOW Inc.; secretary for Citizens for Private Property Rights; president of Ramona Earthquake Preparedness; Economic Development Committee for Ramona Chamber of Commerce; the county's Ramona Revitalization committee; Old Town Ramona Revitalization Project; Ramona Women's Investment Club; and was one of the original organizers of the annual quilt show; among others.

When her children were young, Ragsdale was involved in youth sports, including basketball and soccer, and was active with the PTA at Hanson Lane Elementary School, serving as its president.

She also was involved with the backyard swim programs in Ramona.

"Mom was always dragging us around to backyard swim," recalled her son, Chris Ragsdale, of San Diego. "I remember when I was about 10 or so, Mom went to Ramona Oaks swimming pool and took swimming lessons. She didn't know how to swim, even though we had a pool, but she wanted to make sure all of us knew how to swim."

Theater also was an important part of Ragdale's life. She enjoyed going to stage plays and often wrote reviews for an online service. She was a founder of Ramona Town Hall Players, filling many behind-the-scenes roles including producer and director.

Beverly Rose McCullough was born Sept. 19, 1939, in Fonda, Iowa. She cherished her Iowa roots and talked about some day having a picnic for former Iowans who were residing in Ramona.

She was married to George Ragsdale for 40 years, moving to Ramona in 1975. They adopted four children - Chris and Denise when they were living in New Mexico; Kenny and Christian after they moved to Ramona. Their family grew to include eight grandchildren - Lily, Abby and Grayson Ragsdale; Travis, Jordyn and Jami Sothman, and CJ and Destiny Ragsdale.

Other survivors include her brother, Dar McCullough of Santee, and aunt, Ramona Main, of Angels Camp, Calif.

Memorial donations may be made to the Ragsdale family through Post No. 3783 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, 2247 Kelly St., Ramona.