For decades, Hattie Lee Blue Diederich and her husband ran Diederich’s in Westerlo — a restaurant, gas station, and gift shop.

“My mom was always busy,” said her daughter, Nancy L Diederich; she specialized in the jewelry, glassware, and greeting cards at the gift shop.

Mrs. Diedrich died on Sunday, April 3, 2016, in North Augusta, South Carolina where she had lived. She was 91.

Mrs. Diederich was a native of Sandersville, Georgia where her parents had been farmers. As a young woman, she worked at the Richmond Hotel in Augusta where she got to meet golfers competing in the famous Masters Tournament. Although she did not participate in sports herself, Mrs. Diederich was a lifelong fan of golf, watching it on television.

She met the man who would become her husband, George R. (Bob) Diederich, when he was stationed nearby. “My dad was in the military at Camp Gordon,” said their daughter.

Mr. Diedrich was from Albany so, after they married, they moved to the area. “They bought the business in 1958 and moved to Westerlo,” said Ms. Diederich. They sold the business in the 1980s.

Mrs. Diedrich was very active in the Methodist Church — first at Trinity Methodist Church in Albany and later at the First United Methodist Church in Delmar. She was a member of the United Methodist Women.

She was the Sunday school superintendent in the Albany church and also ran workshops on how to teach Sunday school. She took her son and daughter to Sunday school each week and later she took her grandchildren to Sunday school, too.

When she was home, she took pleasure in arranging the flowers she picked from her yard and in watching the hummingbirds that frequented her feeder.

She was a life member of the Westerlo Fire Company and was in charge of dispatching radio calls to alert the firefighters, her daughter said.

She made many drives to visit her family in Georgia. “She taught me how to drive on the highway with tractor trailers,” said her daughter. “She taught me the importance of getting out of the way for them.

“She was very civic minded...and talkative,” said her daughter. Mrs. Diederich would often help others map out trips. “She drove to Georgia so many times, she knew all the restaurants, and motels and gas stations.”

The one thing that she always took with her on those long trips was her Bible.

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Hattie Lee Blue Diederich is survived by her daughter, Nancy L. Diederich, and her daughter’s companion, Joseph Hodgson, of Glenmont; by her son, Thomas E. Diederich of Westerlo; by her two grandchildren, Paul Murray and Brian Murray; by her two great-grandchildren, John Murray and Collin Murray; and by her sister, Ann Beasley of North Augusta, South Carolina.

A service and burial were in South Carolina in April. Arrangements were by Posey Funeral Directors of North Augusta.

A memorial service will be held on May 14 at 2 p.m. in Delmar at the First United Methodist Church at 428 Kenwood Ave.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Westerlo Fire Company, Post Office Box 87, Westerlo, NY 12193.

— Melissa Hale-Spencer