Patricia “Pat” Lewis Paynter Rush
Former Oak Ridge City Council member Patricia “Pat” Lewis Paynter Rush died Wednesday at Methodist Medical Center after a short illness. She was 82.
Rush was elected to City Council in 1987 and served for 14 years. She was also a former board member of the Oak Ridge Civic Music Association and president of the local Altrusa International organization in 1984 and 1985. She had also been a member of many organizations and boards, and was known for her service in many civic endeavors, her obituary said.
Rush was born Feb. 24, 1930, in Middlesboro, Ky. She had a bachelor’s degree in physics from Hollins College in Roanoke, Va., and she moved to Oak Ridge shortly after her marriage to Richard M. Rush in June 1955.
Richard Rush died in 1996, and he was a former member of the Oak Ridge Board of Education.
Pat Rush’s obituary said she was very involved in Oak Ridge activities as a civic leader and volunteer.
Soon after moving here, she joined the Oak Ridge Civic Music Association Chorus and the choir at First Presbyterian Church and continued singing with both groups for many years. She also served as District Four treasurer for Altrusa International from 1989 to 1991.
Rush’s proudest civic accomplishment, the family said, was her election to City Council and 14 years of service.
Rush is survived by a grandchild Emily Lewis Jenkins of Oak Ridge; daughter and son-in-law, Helen Lewis and Jimmy Jenkins of Oak Ridge; and her son and daughter-in-law, John and Laurie Thompson Rush, who live on a horse farm in Walland; her brother, Walker Burton Paynter Jr. of Morristown; and 10 nieces and nephews.
The family will receive friends from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, at First Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge. The funeral will start at 2 p.m. Saturday with the Reverend Sharon Youngs officiating. Burial will follow at Oak Ridge Memorial Park.
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