Edith Irene Ader Stewart was proud of her work as a personal shopper for famous clients. "That was one thing she would tell everybody, that she had shopped for June Allyson," said Patty Nelson of Alexandria, a friend who helped take care of Mrs. Stewart and her mother. "She enjoyed being out with the public and she was an all-around well-liked person." Mrs. Stewart, 74, of Alexandria, formerly of Newport, died Tuesday morning at her home. She retired in 1979 as a personal shopper for Pogue's Department Store, Cincinnati. She had started there as a sales person 23 years before. Ms. Allyson is a movie actress that Mrs. Stewart shopped for when she was in Cincinnati. When she retired from Pogue's they gave her a book of birds in America. Mrs. Stewart was an avid artist who liked drawing different kinds of birds. "She was so good at it, we have pictures that have been framed," Mrs. Nelson said. "She enjoyed drawing birds. She loved all kinds of animals, especially birds." Mrs. Stewart was born in Higginsport, Ohio, and moved to Cincinnati when she was young. She graduated from Woodward High School and later worked at Deaconess Hospital as a nurse's aide. "She was a warm and loving person," Mrs. Nelson said. "She was just like a grandmother to me." Mrs. Stewart also sang in the choir at Ninth Street Baptist Church in Cincinnati and was a singer in Kroger's Orchestra. She was also a member of Ninth Street Baptist Church, Cincinnati and Main Street Baptist Church, Alexandria.
Survivors include her mother, Addie Cox of Alexandria; and three grandchildren. Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Allison and Rose Funeral Home, Covington. Visitation will begin there at 9 a.m. Thursday. Burial will be in Arlington Cemetery, Cincinnati. Memorials are suggested to Main Street Baptist Church, 306 West Main St., Alexandria, 41001.
Published in the Kentucky Post on February 27, 1991