Louise Enloe Stearns White

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Louise Stearns White, nee Louise Enloe White on June 3, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia . She died peacefully surrounded by family at the age of 85 after a full life. She is survived by her daughter, Vallie Jeter Stearns-Anderson, her son, Edwin White Stearns, her grandchildren, Gordon and Gabrielle Stearns, as well as Lucius Chiaraviglio (stepson), Nicole Gordon Stearns (daughter-in-law), and Kevin Stearns-Anderson (son-in-law).

She was born February 6, 1933 in Atlanta to Margaret Louise White, nee Enloe and Raleigh Ballard White. She grew up in Macon and graduated with a B.A. from Wesleyan College. She worked as a teacher before going on to graduate studies at Emory University where she obtained a Master's in Library Sciences. There she met her first husband, J. Brenton Stearns. They married in 1961 in Macon, Georgia. They moved to West Virginia, then moved to Cheney, Washington , where their daughter, Vallie, was born. They then moved to Boulder, Colorado, then Springfield, Missouri, where their son, Edwin, ws born. Finally they settled in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where Brent Stearns worked as a philosophy professor at a local university. After eight years they separated. and Louise returned to the South, first to St. Augustine, Florida and finally returning to Atlanta, the city she loved best.

Louise loved her profession in library sciences. In 1968, she was presented with a certificate that read, “Cheney Washington now has a public library because Louise E. W. Stearns is a remarkably stubborn woman.” She worked for many different libraries in the various locations she lived, including the libraries at the Manitoba Indian Brotherhood , Flagler College , Southern Technical Institute, and Fulton County Public Library, from which she finally retired. Her greatest love was reference services to undergraduate and graduate students in the Liberal Arts.

She met her second husband, Lucio Chiaraviglio for the first time at Emory University when they were graduate students, and for the second time in 1986 during the orientation of new students at Georgia Institute of Technology where her son Edwin was enrolled and where Lucio was working as a professor of computer science. They quickly renewed their friendship which developed into a tender courtship. In 1999, they travelled to his homeland, Italy, together to such destinations as Florence, Venice, Rome and Milan where they witnessed the unveiling of a bronze sculpture of “The Horse” based on diagrams by Leonardo da Vinci and presented as a gift from the American people to the Italian people, a project initiated by her cousin Roger Enloe and his brother-in-law Charles Dent. Later that year in December, Louise and Lucio were married at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Atlanta. They had a long and fulfilling marriage, vacationing on Little Cumberland Island and spending time with their grandchildren, until Lucio passed away in August 2016.

Louise supported many beneficial causes over the years, including civil rights, peace and disarmament, women's reproductive rights, and the advancement of American Indian peoples. She was a talented pianist and often played by ear while encouraging others to sing along at family and church gatherings. She had a particular interest in traditional, folk, gospel and children's music. She was lively, outgoing and put special effort into correspondence with family and friends near and far. She was greatly loved and will be deeply missed by those who are close to her. In lieu of please send memorial gifts to the American Indian College Fund.