Ruth Walter

WALTER, Ruth Wanda - Age 101, of Tennessee formerly of Flushing, died Tuesday February 12, 2019 at Rosewood AFC in Dewitt, MI. Funeral services will be held 12PM Tuesday February 19, at Sharp Funeral Homes, Miller Road Chapel, our temporary location, Hill Creek Church, 5363 Hill Road, Swartz Creek (Mundy Township). Pastor Doug Connelly officiating. Burial will follow in Flint Memorial Park Cemetery, Mt. Morris. Visitation will be held 10AM until time of service at the church Tuesday. Those desiring contributions may be made to Samaritan's Purse, Salvation Army or St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Ruth was born September 24, 1917 in Charleston, Illinois, the daughter of the late John Oscar and Maud A. (McDougle) Fitzgerald. She married Norman Walter on July 10, 1937 in Manistee, MI. Ruth enjoyed crocheting and made numerous afghans for family members, friends and charities. She was a very good cook (especially pies) a devoted wife , mother and loyal friend. Ruth also enjoyed working jigsaw puzzles and reading. She was a member of Riverside United Methodist Church in Columbia TN and was a member of the Golden Age Club and Square Dance Club. SHe lived the majority of her life in the Flint/Flushing area but then spent 20 years in Tucson, AZ and 21 years at Columbia, TN before moving to DeWitt, MI. Surviving are: daughters, Sandra J. (Richard) Thompson of Levering MI, Carol A. (Jerry) Pavlat of DeWitt, MI; grandchildren, Rich (Joyce) Thompson, Tom (Darla) Thompson, Sue (Larry) Salinas, Kim Welch, Jolene (Kip) Jackson,Vicki (Kerry) Hayslip, Jon Welch, Kari Lynn (Richard) Acosta, Chip (Colleen) Pavlat, B.J. (Bobby Jo) Pavlat; 28 great grandchildren and 22 great great grandchildren. She is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews. Special thank you to the pallbearers; Tom Thompson, Dan Thompson, Josh Thayer, Aaron Rohrbeck, John Welch, Chip Pavlat, B.J.Pavlat and Larry Salinas. She was also preceded in death by her husband of almost 65 years, Norman E. Walter; siblings, Glen Fitzgerald, Dick Fitzgerald, Dorothy Petroskey, Caroline Fitzgerald, Wilma Pearl Van Brocklin,William Fitzgerald, Rebecca Sanders and Olivine Barton. Tributes may be posted at www.sharpfuneralhomes.com. Tribute to our Mother I want to tell you a little bit about my mother. Some you probably know, other parts may be new to you. She was born back in 1917, a middle child in a family of 9 children. Our Grandpa Fitzgerald was injured in an accident that left him crippled. He had to use crutches to get around. This hardship guaranteed that the family was poor. Due to the depression, at the age of about 12, mother was sent to live with an aunt and uncle in Grand Rapids to lessen the financial strain. She was treated very well but it was still scary. Switching schools with a different system put her behind a year. Upon arriving back home she walked to school with bean and biscuit sandwiches or biscuits with lard as a spread. You probably didn't realize it that mother only had a 9th grade education. But her language and interest in leaving never stopped. After they moved to Tucson, Arizona, mother was self-taught about much of the flora and fauna of the area. I thought everybody knew and learned these kinds of things till talking with others and discovering they weren't able to identify lots of trees, flowers and cactus. My mother was always a neat, meticulous person about herself and her home. She was always neat and well-groomed. Growing up I always felt so awkward and messy compared to her. She could wear a pair of nylons for weeks, whereas I usually had a run in them after one wearing. Mother used good grammar and was always polite and gracious. I don't recall her ever swearing or using coarse Language or any gossiping. I have said many times that if mother had ever been in a beauty pageant she would have been voted Miss Congeniality! She was always a lady! In talking with her to fill out a memory book, some things really stood out to me. When asked if she kept a messy room growing up, she said "No". Asking for more information, I was told "there wasn't anything to mess it up with". She never had a valentine's growing up, or having a Christmas tree. Her one memory of a holiday was when the Elks Club brought in a holiday dinner and a few gifts. A far cry from our culture today. Mother was always thankful for what she had and content with what she had. She remained thrifty her whole life. When shopping for a new bathrobe with her she had to decide between two she liked. She chose the least expensive even though she liked the other one better. As I mentioned before mother was deliberate and could not hurry. She had a little plaque in her kitchen that said "the hurrier I go, the behinder I get". Mother excepted the Lord as her savior in May of 1966 at the age of 49 and daddy did also about a month later. I feel very blessed to have had such a wonderful mother and example and I'm thankful for her long life but now I rejoice knowing she's in heaven with no more confusion, no more pain, and now the celebration begins........!

Visitation

Tuesday, February 19, 2019 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Sharp Funeral Homes, Miller Road Chapel. Our temporary location at Hill Creek Church
5363 Hill Road Swartz Creek 48473, United States

Funeral Service

Tuesday, February 19, 2019 12:00 PM
Sharp Funeral Homes, Miller Road Chapel. Our temporary location at Hill Creek Church
5363 Hill Road Swartz Creek 48473, United States