Eric Frederick, 90, city and racing official
Eric Frederick, a retired city transportation officer and racing official, died Sunday of complications after heart failure at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. He was 90 and lived in the Woodbrook section of Baltimore County.
He worked for the city's Department of Public Works for 43 years, retiring in 1970 as director of transportation. He also did transportation consulting for the cities of Buffalo, N.Y., New Orleans and Denver.
Mr. Frederick was appointed to the Maryland Racing Commission by Gov. Harry R. Hughes in 1984 and served until 1998. At various times he was a driver, trainer and owner of standard-bred trotting horses. He was also an associate judge and presiding judge for standard-bred meets at Freestate, Rosecroft and Ocean Downs tracks in Maryland and at Pompano Beach in Florida.
He was considered an expert on harness racing and often spoke out at commission hearings on behalf of the low-wagering $2 bettor.
"He was very active for the bettor and the harness industry - the small horseman, the small breeder," said former Maryland Del. Paul Weisengoff.
Born in Baltimore and raised on Ostend Street, Mr. Frederick was a Polytechnic Institute graduate. He attended Pennsylvania State University, where he studied engineering.
In 1965, he married Virginia S. Gallagher, who survives him. He was previously wed to Katherine Cusak. They were divorced.
Private funeral services were held Wednesday.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by a stepson, Hugh Gallagher of Trappe; a stepdaughter, Ginny Keelty of Franklin, Tenn.; four grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter. A son, Eric Frederick Jr., died in the early 1950s.
Ruth C. Alden, 87, nurse, Columbia resident
Ruth C. Alden, a retired registered nurse and Columbia resident, died Saturday of pulmonary failure at Howard County General Hospital. She was 87.
From 1960 until her retirement in 1979, Mrs. Alden was a registered nurse at Washington Adventist Hospital in Takoma Park. Earlier, she had worked as a nurse at hospitals in Martinsburg, W.Va., Wilmington, Del., and Sandusky, Ohio.
Born Ruth Caroline Carlson in Boston, she was a graduate of Girls' High School there in 1932. She earned her bachelor's degree in nursing from the Massachusetts State Infirmary in Tewksbury, Mass.
The 48-year Takoma Park resident was married in 1942 to the Rev. Richard A. Alden, a Seventh-day Adventist minister, who died in 1960.
She had been a member for many years of the Takoma Park Seventh-day Adventist Church.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Atholton Seventh-day Adventist Church, 6520 Martin Road in Columbia.
She is survived by a son, John R. Alden of Columbia; a daughter, Elaine Priscilla Alden Price Kennedy of Lancaster, Mass.; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
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