GREENSBORO DORIS COOK HARDY, 89, PASSED AWAY peacefully on January 13, 2016, after a life filled with the love of family and friends. Doris was born on October 26, 1926 in Baltimore, Maryland. She attended the Peabody Conservatory of Music and Johns Hopkins University, followed by study and graduation from Maryville College in Tennessee. She also earned a master's degree from the Cincinnati College of Music. As a young woman, she was the Director of Religious Education at the New Providence Church in Maryville, Tennessee. Her eighteen-year marriage to her first husband David Reed took her to Connecticut, where she was active in the founding of the Polka Dot Playhouse. She spent many years as a music teacher in elementary schools in Connecticut, where she was also active in church music in the Simsbury United Methodist Church and the Westminster Presbyterian Church. She was married for thirty years to Rupert H. Austin, Jr. (Rupe) Austin, and thoroughly enjoyed their homes and friends in Simsbury and Avon, Connecticut. Following his passing, she moved to Greensboro, North Carolina, where she had much happiness during her almost twelve years of marriage to John W. Hardy, with whom she shared many memories of childhood in Baltimore. During her years in Greensboro, she especially appreciated her Sunday school class at First Baptist Church. Throughout her life, Doris was guided by the convictions of her Christian faith, and shared with others her love of piano playing and singing. She also took very seriously her responsibilities to be an informed and active citizen, she delighted in the personalities and antics of cats, and she took an active interest in the lives of her extended family members and lifelong friends. She will be remembered with love and affection by family members and friends, including her husband John W. Hardy; her step-children Ann Austin-Beck (John Beck) and William H. Austin; her nephew Dale Bennett (Michelle) and niece Joyce Roussell; her grand-children (Katie, David, and Andrew Beck, and Lauren, Billy, and Ben Austin); her grand-nieces and grand-nephews (Brooke and Keri Bennett, and Kevin and Ryan Roussell); and her extended Hardy family (John and Christy, Jim and Colleen, and Richard and Ginger, and seven Hardy grandchildren and two great-grandchildren). A memorial service will be held at First Baptist Church, Greensboro, on Saturday, January 16, at 2 pm, and the family will receive friends at 1 pm in the church parlor. The family is served by Gate City Cremation. In lieu of flowers, those remembering Doris might consider a donation in her memory to Maryville College, noting that the gift is in memory of Doris Hardy (Maryville College, attn.: Advancement, 502 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804).