Rhoda Mary Hunt moved to the US in 1894 and met London-born middleweight champion Stanton Abbott in Providence, Rhode Island. They were married in 1895 and had two sons, Rossmore (Feb 21 1896) and Eugene (March 31 1899). 

In 1911, divorced from her husband she returned to England with her sons on RMS Olympic but it soon became apparent that her boys were not happy and the family booked on RMS Titanic to return to the US.

They were awoken on the night of the collision by a steward telling them to get their lifejackets and make their way to the deck. As they waited in line in the second-class saloon area, Rossmore said a prayer for his mother to be saved even if he and his brother were taken. When they arrived at the lifeboat and it became clear her sons could not come with her, Rhoda steadfastly refused to take her place. 

The three were swept into the sea as the ship sank. Rhoda desperately tried to cling on to her children but was unable to do so. She was freezing and alone in the water when she was able to reach Collapsible A. Rhoda was one of 13 who clung to life through the night as others drifted back in to the water. Officer Lowe returned later to collect the survivors.

On the Carpathia she was cared for in the smoking room. Her legs were badly injured and she was then hospitalized in New York for another two weeks. She was one of the last survivors to be discharged. 

She never regretted staying on the ship until the end, she had that time with her sons. She would suffer respiratory problems and severe asthma for the rest of her life. She grieved the loss of her sons for months. In December 1912 she married her longtime friend George Charles Williams and they relocated to Jacksonville, Florida.

In 1928 they returned to England to settle the affairs of her husband's father's estate but she was then repeatedly refused entry back into the US and saw out her days back in her native England.