CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Carol Whitehead, who helped found The Rutherford Institute with her husband, died Wednesday. She was 60.

Whitehead died at the civil liberties organization's office in Charlottesville, said Rutherford Institute spokeswoman Nisha Mohammed. A cause of death hasn't been determined.

Whitehead's husband, John, is president of the organization, which focuses on First Amendment and religious freedom issues.

Carol Whitehead said in a 2007 article that starting the institute wasn't easy because the couple had little money. She said they believed it was what God wanted them to do and they took "a step of faith."