Iliff-Ruggiero Funeral Home

Hilda M. (Spencer) Utter, 93, died Sunday evening, June 25, 2009 after several illnesses over the past three years.  Born in Hainesville, NJ, Hilda moved to Walpack after her marriage and then to Lafayette.  Daughter of the late John and Hulda (Van Sickle) Spencer, she was the youngest of their seven children.  She was married to the late Marcus A. Utter for nearly 75 years until his death in November 2008.  Together they were the proud owners and operators of the Utter Dairy Farm on Beaver Run Road in Lafayette where they have lived since 1944.  Hilda worked many years as a School Bus Driver with the Havens and the Culvers Bus Companies as well as for the Lafayette Federated Church.  During World War II she knitted socks and gloves for the soldiers out of the Walpack Methodist Church.  Hilda was a Sunday school and Bible School Teacher in the Lafayette Federated Church where she was a member.  She enjoyed volunteering her time with Meals on Wheels, the American Red Cross and the American Cancer Society.  She was also an honorary member of the Lafayette Township Ladies Fire Auxiliary.  Mrs. Utter was a devoted and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and friend and neighbor to all who knew her.  Survivors include her beloved daughters, Sally Ann and husband the Reverend Robert L. Schmidt of Norristown, PA, Shirley M. and husband Laurence Welch of Schwenksville, PA, and Catherine M. Clink of Lafayette Township.  Hilda is also survived by her five cherished grandchildren and three great grandchildren.  She was pre-deceased by her brothers Robert, Clarence, and Loren Spencer as well as by her sisters, Mary Lesh, Arvilla Reper, and Minnie Spencer.  Funeral service for Hilda will be held Friday, January 30, 2009 at 10:00 AM in the Iliff-Ruggiero Funeral Home, 156 Main Street (Route 206) Newton, NJ.  Interment will follow immediately in the Hainesville Cemetery, Hainesville, NJ.  Visitation will be Thursday January 29, 2009 in the funeral home from 2 to 4 and from 7 to 9 p.m.  In lieu of flowers memorial contributions in memory of Hilda may be made to the Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice or to the Lafayette Federated Church Food Pantry, 180 Route 15, Lafayette, NJ 07848.