Esther Martha Whelan Ring, 76, died Thursday, August 5, 2010 near Topeka, KS in a single-car accident.

Esther was born May 30, 1934 on a farm near Reading, MN, the eldest daughter of William Daniel and Ivah Esther (Dean) Whelan. She attended District 29 School, Worthington High School, Hamline University and Mankato Teachers College.

Esther married Don Dixon Ring March 27, 1955. The couple moved to different locations, making many life-long friends along the way. After marriage, she continued her education, graduating from Alabama A&M, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Special Education. She then taught in and around Huntsville, AL. Esther also was director of a group home in Worthington, MN, 1979-1981. After moving to Kansas, she earned her Master’s Degrees in Learning Disabilities, Behavioral Disorders, Gifted Education, and Director of Special Education from Kansas State University. She taught in northeastern Kansas until her retirement in 1999 when she moved to Lynn Haven, FL. There she continued working part-time as a tutor.

Helping children learn and seeing them achieve their potential were her greatest rewards. She enjoyed traveling in this country and abroad visiting friends and relatives. She was a wonderful cook and seamstress. Recently, she was active at Holy Nativity Episcopal Church, Panama City, FL, and with the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Don Dixon Ring; one brother, Daniel Whelan; and a brother-in-law, Donald Smith.

Esther is survived by her two sisters, Mary Smith, Brewster, MN and Ruth (Tom) Shore, Worthington, MN; three children, Kimberly (Walter) Schumm, Manhattan, KS, Launie (Thelma) Whelan, Panama City, FL, and Genevieve (Larry) Anderson, Wichita Falls, TX; 12 grandchildren, Jonathan (Allison) Schumm, Topeka, KS; Miriam (Henry) Warkentin, Olathe, KS; Joshua, Phillip, Deborah, Martha and Daniel Schumm, Manhattan, KS; Genevieve (Robert) Davis, NM; Cristalyn and Patrick Whelan, Panama City, FL, Nicholas and Kathleen Anderson, Wichita Falls, TX; 12 great-grandchildren, and many cousins.

A memorial service is scheduled for 7 PM Thursday, August 19, at Lauer Funeral Home in Seneca, KS. Per her wishes, she will be interred in the family plot in the Reading, MN cemetery after a funeral service in Worthington, MN.

In lieu of flowers, all donations received by the family will be given to her favorite charities.