SWANNANOA; CERNAY LES REIMS--Eliane Marguerite Destrumelle Kilpatrick Reed, 93, passed away on Sunday, June 16, 2013 at the Pine Ridge Nursing Home in Thomasville, NC. She was born on Feb. 10, 1920 in Cernay les Reims, France to Leon Gabriel and Marie Marguerite Destrumelle. After marrying Beresford Arnold Kilpatrick in 1945 she came to the USA in 1946, first arriving in Biltmore NC and later residing most of her life near Swannanoa. She embraced the mountains of WNC as her home.
She is preceded in death by her parents, her sister Huguette, her first husband, and her second husband Clinton Reed.
She is survived by her children Bill Kilpatrick, Huguette Bartlett, and Robert Kilpatrick; five grandchildren, Thomas, Tammy, Suzie, Ernest, and Hannah; eight great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews; and her sister Edith and family in France.
Eliane trained as a professional seamstress in Paris. Also in France, she trained as a translator in the international auxiliary language, Esperanto. She learned gardening from her father and homemaking from her mother.
Her greatest joy was from sharing the love and companionship of family and friends, an enduring legacy to us all. She was highly regarded for her skill at and love of cooking. She was widely known for her great vigor, kind heartedness, strength of character, and deep sentimentality about loved ones. Always engaged in multiple new projects, often for the benefit of others or motivated by curiosity about to accomplish something she had never done before, she would delight in surprising family or friends with the results of her latest finished project. She loved nature and had an abiding interest in plants. Summers at her home were especially notable and sweet in part due to the numerous flowering plants on display inside and growing outside.
A private memorial with family and friends is scheduled.
Memorials may be made to the family at www.kirkseyfhmarion.com.
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