Ruth Duncan dies at 90
Ruth Duncan, 90, of Charles City, passed away Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017 at the Floyd County Medical Center in Charles City
A funeral service for Ruth Duncan will be held 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017 at Saint John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Charles City with Erik Hoefer officiating. Burial will be at Riverside Cemetery in Charles City.
Visitation will be at Hauser Funeral Home from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 11, 2017 and will continue one hour prior to the funeral service at the church on Saturday.
Ruth Velma (Brinkman) Duncan was born on May 17, 1927 on the family farm in rural Clarksville. She was the fourth child born to Fred and Isabel (Hoffert) Brinkman. Ruth was baptized and confirmed at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Greene. She attended country school through the 8th grade and graduated from Greene High School in 1944.
On May 23, 1952, she married the love of her life, William Duncan. Together with his children, Karen and James, they started their family. Their union was blessed with three more daughters: Jane, Sharon and Lori.
Ruth was employed by the former Cedar Valley Hospital and at the Northwestern Bell Telephone Company as a telephone operator. She resigned from the phone company before Sharon was born to become a stay at home Mom. Ruth and Bill farmed for ten years near Bassett, and in 1962 they purchased the grain elevator in Ionia. They operated it until August 1994, when they retired and sold it. Bill and Ruth moved to Riverside Senior in September 2008. Due to declining health, she moved to Cedar Health on May 16, 2017.
Ruth and Bill enjoyed traveling during retirement. They traveled to Hawaii, Jamaica, Switzerland, Norway and Sweden. They enjoyed going to Senior Citizens in Ionia. Ruth was a member of Saint John Evangelical Lutheran Church, Heritage Club and the Moose. Family was everything to Ruth. She loved attending her grandchildren and great-grandchildren’s’ activities. Her interests included gardening and canning, playing games and cards. Ruth was a very giving person and her last gift was being a tissue donor.
Living family members include her daughters: Jane (Jerry) Hammel of Ankeny, Sharon (Don) Tieskotter of Charles City and Lori (Bob) Jenkins of Tucson, Ariz; daughter-in-law, Kathy Duncan of Golden, Colo; son-in-law, Basil (Marlyce) Law of Charles City; grandchildren: Ryan and Kevin Hammel, Joshua, Brianna and Jared Tieskotter, Liz Gminski, Bekah Palmer, Chris Cleveland, Becky Vermillion, Linda Lawman, Rachel Asklen, Ian Duncan, Cally Goddard and Deanna Rude; great-grandchildren: Andrew Parks, Hannah Leidal, Deon, Dalton, Darian, Silas and Deacon Cleveland, Abby, Hudson and Alina Vermillion, Jace Lawman, Clara, Jarius, Ellie and Kaylee Asklen, Alexis and Liena Goddard, Robert Rude, Logan and Raegan Hammel, Valhalla Palmer and Ezekiel Gminski; great-great-grandchildren: Wrigley and Juliet Parks; brothers: Darrel (Letha) Brinkman of Clarksville, Clarence (Violet) Brinkman of Greene and Kenny (Bev) Brinkman of Fort Myers Beach, Fla; sisters: Cathy (Joe) Huber of Overland Park, Kan. and Esther Bose of Garland, Texas; sisters-in-law: Lorraine Brinkman of Allison and Faith Lockey of Charles City; along with several nieces, nephews, other family members and friends.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Bill, on May 28, 2014; her parents; daughter, Karen Law; son, Jim Duncan; brother, Ray Brinkman; two sisters: Irene Sartori and Carol Ritchie; two grandchildren in infancy; and great-grandson, Kyle Duncan.
Hauser Funeral Home, (641) 228-2323, in Charles City, is in charge of local arrangements. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.hauserfh.com.
