Obituary of Jimmie L. Ruth, Sr.

Jimmie L. Ruth, Sr. age 90, passed into the arms of his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on April 5 at his home. Jimmie was born June 6, 1932 in Millwood, Georgia, to Joseph Reppard and Minnie Mae (Hargraves) Ruth. Although he was the youngest of six children, his siblings, who lovingly called him “Buddy”, always went to him for advice. His gift of wisdom benefitted so many who came to him for support and encouragement. At the age of 18, at the invitation of his brother Joe, he moved to Ashtabula, Ohio, and began a 40-year career at Electromet/Union Carbide/Elkem Metals, starting as a janitor and working his way up to Maintenance Supervisor in 1970. He was a supervisor over several departments throughout his career, was promoted to Master Mechanic, and ran the Maintenance Dept. until his retirement in 1991. Jimmie was a Veteran of the U.S. Army, serving from 1952-1955. While living in Ashtabula, he met and married Dolessa Stegall in 1952. They later moved to Plymouth Township and raised their four sons on a farm there. She preceded him in death in 2002. Jimmie loved farming; he raised cows, hogs, horses, chickens, turkeys and ducks; and enjoyed gardening, cooking, and canning and preserving. He was famous for his ribs, spaghetti sauce, BBQ sauce, hot pepper salad and cucumber relish. Most of his recipes will remain with him as he cooked with “a pinch of this and a dab of that” and never wrote down any of it. He was a man of great faith, having become a member of the Church at age 12 where he received the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. He was a life-long member of New Hope Pentecostal Church where he served as a Board Member, Sunday School teacher, Elder, and interim Pastor, and currently was a member of the Pentecostal Community Church of Ashtabula. He volunteered as a supervisor for several years in the community project S.A.F.E. (Station Avenue Future Entrepreneurs), an after-school youth program in the late 90’s, where he mentored many children and impacted their lives. He served on the Lakeview Federal Credit Union Board of Directors for nearly 40 years, serving as President most of that time. He served as President of the Ridgeview Senior Housing Board of Directors, and was one of the Trustees of the Community Action Board of Directors and also served them as a representative of the Ashtabula County Board of Commissioners. He cherished the friendships he made through his associations in those organizations. Jimmie is survived by his wife June, whom he married September 15, 2006; sons Jimmie Jr. (Patrice) of Georgia; Randy (Darla) of Oklahoma; and Nathan of Georgia; step-daughter Darla (John) Helfer of Sheffield Twp; daughter-in-law Sara Ruth of Ashtabula; 20 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by wife Dolessa, son Darryl in 2020; his parents, and his five siblings Frances, Willie, Augustus in infancy, Joseph and Violet. Services will be held at Ducro Funeral Home, 4524 Elm Ave., Ashtabula, Ohio on Wednesday, April 12 at noon. Calling hours will be at the funeral home on Tuesday, April 11 from 5:00-8:00, and on Wednesday one hour prior to the service. Pastor Scott Ardary of Pentecostal Community Church will officiate. Final resting place will be at Greenlawn Memory Gardens, North Kingsville. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Feed Our Vets, 433 Center St., Ashtabula, Ohio 44004, Hospice of the Western Reserve, 1166 Lake Ave., Ashtabula, OH 44004, or the Wounded Warrior Project. Special thanks to the caregivers of Hospice of the Western Reserve, who took outstanding care of our husband, father, grandfather and friend. “One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.” - Psalm 27:4