ANNE HOLMAN RUMPH was born July 19, 1935 in Lowe, West Virginia to Cecil T. and Dorothy B. (Brown) Hopkins. She graduated from Jane Addams Vocational High School in Cleveland, Ohio, where she completed The Practical Nursing Course. She was so proud to have known and been taught music and math at Jane Addams by Mrs. Katherine Goble Johnson: one of the group of African American Women highlighted in the movie “Hidden Figures.”
After High School, Anne worked for two years at Cleveland’s Huron Road Hospital. It was during this time that she met the “Love of Her Life,” Clarence Rumph Jr. The two were joined in Holy Matrimony on February 11, 1956, and relocated to Buffalo, New York. The two remained “joined at the hip” for the next 65 years.
Soon after relocating to Buffalo, Anne received her certification as a Licensed Practical Nurse, and after 32 years of service in the various departments, she retired from Sisters of Charity Hospital.
Anne joined New Hope Baptist Church in March of 1956 and was baptized on April 8, 1956, by the late N.A. Mason. As a member of the original committee that drafted the New Hope Baptist Church Constitution, Anne will be remembered as a long time, faithful member of the Gospel Chorus and The Inspirational Seven singing groups, as well as being one of the founding organizers of the New Hope Nursing Guild. In 2003, she was honored during the New Hope anniversary for her dedication and service, and in 2018, she and Clarence received the “Helping Somebody Award” at the 28th Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Breakfast.
Anne enjoyed baking, photography, traveling, gardening, and music. She baked cakes in support of various events and fundraisers, had a vegetable garden for years that the deer just loved, traveled (mostly by bus) with church members, and took hundreds of pictures and slides to record the trips. She tried her hand at playing the electric bass guitar, and on most days could be heard singing a melody as she went about the day, but she really fell head over heels in love with quilting later in life. She was a devoted member of the Amherst Senior’s Center Quilting Club for over 27 years. Her pride and joy, “The Underground Railroad” quilt, that was sewn totally by hand is on display today.
On Wednesday, November 1, 2023, God called Anne to join Clarence in paradise. She was preceded in death by her parents and three siblings: sister, Janet M. and brothers, Cecil T. Jr. and Henry S. Hopkins.
She leaves to cherish her memory a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives, neighbors, and her very special New Hope family.
The family will receive friends Friday, November 10, 2023, 11 AM at New Hope Baptist Church, 2090 Genesee Street, Buffalo, NY 14211. Funeral to follow at 12 PM. Interment Acacia Park Cemetery.