Ardith Dione Gardner

Ardith Dione Gardner, 96, passed away peacefully on August 10, 2026, at Rittenhouse Village Northside in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Born in Los Angeles on June 17, 1930, to schoolteachers Milton and Vera Newcomer, Ardith grew up in Santa Ana, California. She earned a B.A. in Sociology from Manchester College, now Manchester University, in North Manchester, Indiana, in 1952. After college, she moved to Chicago, where she worked as a group worker with children and teenage girls at Emerson House, a settlement house. From 1953 to 1955, she served as a probation officer for Cook County Family Court, handling cases involving children and delinquent girls on Chicago’s South Side.

Ardith met Orville Leo Gardner in 1950 while both were volunteering at Elgin State Hospital. They were married on June 1, 1953, in Chicago and shared 63 years of marriage. From 1955 to 1967, she served as a pastor’s wife in Charlton, Massachusetts; Redondo Beach, California; and Indianapolis, Indiana.

After her three children were in school, Ardith returned to work as a crisis case worker at Mary Riggs Neighborhood Center in Indianapolis from 1968 to 1971. She later became an investigator for the Indiana State Civil Rights Commission, where she worked until her retirement in 1995. A few years before retiring, she received the Outstanding Citizen of Indiana award from the Civil Rights Commission.

She then began part-time volunteer work with the Central Indiana Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), continuing for nearly 20 years until 2014. She and Orville attended NAMI conferences across the country, including trips to Washington, DC, where they lobbied members of Congress for increased research funding for mental illness. She spoke about the scientific evidence showing that serious mental illnesses are biologically based brain diseases, helping to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. She also frequently shared the family perspective on mental illness with third-year IU medical students, as well as IU psychiatry residents and physicians. In addition, she advocated for services for those living with all forms of mental illness and worked to improve their quality of life.

Ardith loved spending her free time gardening and “digging in the dirt” in the backyard flower garden, where something was always in bloom. She often picked flowers to share with neighbors so they could enjoy them too. Whether as a mother, social worker, civil rights investigator, or community volunteer, Ardith devoted her life to helping others. She believed that a person’s true measure is how they treat others—with kindness and respect.

Ardith was preceded in death by her daughter, Laurie Gardner, and her husband, Orville Gardner.

She is survived by her children, Emily Gardner and Todd Gardner; granddaughters Katrina Marcey and Samantha Alford; great-grandsons Emmett Marcey and Carter Marcey; great granddaughter Annette Alford; and her sister, Jane Harshbarger.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on Saturday, November 14 at 2:00 p.m. in the chapel of North United Methodist Church, 3801 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to any of the following organizations:

• National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI): www.NAMI.org

• American Cancer Society: American Cancer Society

• Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana: www.gleaners.org