Chapman, Mabel

Passed:

Age: 90

Source:

Death Notice:

Obituary Date: 2010-10-30

Information: Ripley Icon Claimed by Freak Accident Ripley Police have termed the death of a Ripley icon last weekend as a “freak accident”.  Mabel Starcher Chapman, 90, was found dead on the driveway of her residence by caretakers at her farm Sunday morning. According to Sgt. Clyde Kenny of the Ripley Police Department, who investigated the incident, it is speculated that Chapman got out of her Ford Ranger pickup sometime Saturday and left it in gear. She apparently reached back into the vehicle to retrieve mail or to try to put it into park and was knocked down by the open door as the truck rolled backward. She was run over by the front wheel. Chapman was the great-granddaughter of Jacob Starcher, an early settler who donated 30 acres of land to establish the town of Ripley. Chapman served as a Deputy Sheriff, was first Executive Secretary of the WV Department of Finance and Administration, Assistant Comptroller of that organization, a social worker with the WV Department of Welfare and as director of Social Services at Jackson General Hospital. She was an animal lover, especially horses, and served as a riding instructor at Coonskin Park Stables, Mountain State Riding School and on her Willow Haven Farm in Ripley where she bred, raised, trained and boarded horses. Chapman made news in 2002 when she offered her farm as a landing site for President Bush and his entourage's helicopters for his visit to the Ripley Fourth of July. Chapman was an active member of her community and was involved in numerous local, state and national organizations. Funeral services were held Thursday at Waybright Funeral Home in Ripley with interment at Pine Hill Cemetery in Ripley.