RUTH ANDERSON

Ruth Marie Anderson, of Neenah, age 83, passed away Friday, July 6, 2012. She was born March 3, 1929 in Chicago, IL. Ruth was preceded in death by her loving parents, Bill & Ruth (Davidson) Pueschel. Her family soon moved to Milwaukee where her Dad worked for A.O. Smith. Ruth attended a private high school in Whitefish Bay. She became a strong swimmer at her Grandparents cottage during the summers in Indiana at the end of Lake Michigan. She said that every time she came back from vacation with blonde hair and a deep tan the other girls wished they could have been with her. One boy Ruth dated had a chauffeur driving the car. Others she met were a boy and two sisters named Pabst. One of the sisters became her best friend. In high school she became a figure skater and field hockey enthusiast. In the variety show she sang, played the piano and played concerts in many variety shows. Pictures of a beautiful teenage Ruth, along with wedding photos, hung in the hallway on their home on Bridgewood Drive. Ruth was a beautiful woman inside and out. She met her husband of nearly 60 years in his sophomore year at Lawrence University. He impressed her parents and her Swedish "born grandmother by speaking Swedish with them. These last years at Oakridge, her college senior yearbook sat on the table in her room. Workers there all told her she was an amazing woman in pictures and spirit. In one picture in which she is 18, she is wearing a short skirt and blonde hair, and gives a real reminder of the wonderful, young and free spirit that she embodied. Ruth received two stuffed pillows with embroidery on the front saying, Home Is Where Your mom is. This couldnt be more true. Following are some of the things Ruth invested her time in; YTF book club, officer : 17 years, Aide in the science lab at Neenah Armstrong high school 11 years, with the last four as Registrar, Meals On Wheels volunteer 14 years, and after her husbands retirement in 1978, they worked together, Neenah Landmarks Commission VP 11 years, Neenah Historical Society; board member, Program Chairman 12 years, Hospice volunteer 7 years, and the League of Women Voters 35 years. Survivors include her husband, Ken; four children: Karen Anderson, Milwaukee, Jim (Julie) Anderson, Omaha, NE, John (Janie) Anderson, Neenah, Ken (Kris) Anderson, Neenah; eight grandchildren: Lindsey, Molly, Lauren, Will, Mady, Connor, Adam and Ava. A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 14, 2012, at the Congregational United Church of Christ of Neenah/Menasha, 1511 Nicolet Blvd., Neenah, with The Rev. Lynne Spencer-Smith officiating. Visitation will be held at the church from 10:00 a.m. until the hour of service. In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been set up in Ruths name to be given to some of the causes she was most passionate about. She was the best mom any kids could ever have had, her 4 children, along with spouses and 8 grandchildren will miss her forever. Thanks for everything, Mom. What Mark Twain wrote at the end of Adams Diary at Eves grave, matches perfectly what Ruths husband thinks about her: Wheresoever she was, there was Eden. The family wishes to thank Theda Care Hospice and Oakridge Gardens for their loving care of Ruth.