Services for W.C. “Carroll” Ritchie, of Brookhaven, are at FirstUnited Methodist Church of Brookhaven on Wednesday, May 12, withvisitation at 9 a.m. in the church parlor, and a memorial serviceto follow at 10 a.m. in the church sanctuary. His ashes will beinterred at Rosehill Cemetery during a private service. BrookhavenFuneral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Ritchie, 72, who passed away at his home in Brookhaven, wasborn on Nov. 8, 1937, to William Prentiss “W.P.” Ritchie and LucyMyers Ritchie. He was employed with Harrigill Trucking andPackard/Delphi of Brookhaven. He was preceded in death by his wife,Monita Thompson Ritchie.

Carroll was a graduate of Brookhaven High School. He received hisundergraduate and master’s degrees in music from the University ofIndiana at Bloomington, Ind. He also attended Louisiana StateUniversity to pursue his doctorate in music.

Carroll was an active presence in the arts community of Brookhaven.As a founding member of Brookhaven Little Theatre, he served inevery phase of the organizations operations. Mr. Ritchie acted anddirected in numerous productions and along with his wife, Nita, wasa driving force in the BLT growth. He served on the board ofdirectors and was also selected to serve as the chairman of theboard and executive director of Little Theatre. In 1989, he wasrecognized for his work as a recipient of the John Landress Award,joining his wife, Nita, who was a previous recipient of theaward.

Mr. Ritchie was the creator and musical director of the “UsualPlayers,” which became a staple of BLT membership parties andperformed at various community events. The “Usual Players,”composed of local vocal talent, performed programs of the music ofCole Porter, Rogers and Hammerstein, and Rogers and Hart. Mr.Ritchie was the director and creative force behind “An Evening withGershwin,” the first complete musical production of BrookhavenLittle Theatre.

Mr. Ritchie was a member of First United Methodist Church, where hewas a member of the choir and a previous director of the choir. Asa member of the choir, he was the director and creative force for”The Chamber Singers.”

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to Brookhaven LittleTheatre or the First United Methodist Church Choir.