Ruby Lee (Stockwell) Ashworth

Ruby Lee Ashworth

1929 – 2021

Born to Bert A. Stockwell and Belva E. Stockwell on January 8, 1929 on a cold snowy morning in North Kansas City, Missouri.  Ruby was the tenth child born to this family and the eighth surviving child with one more to come.  Life was tough for this family during the depression.  One of Ruby’s sisters was already married by this time and she would not live with the 3 oldest sisters at home.  One of her earliest memories was being taken from her bed the day after Christmas 1931 as the house was on fire, no one was injured but all their belongings as few as they were, were lost except for her red coat she remembered all these years later. 

All her pre-school years were spent in rural areas around Kansas City, farming the Missouri River bottom land.  There was no social life on the farm where Ruby took care of the chickens.  In 1937 the family moved to Oklahoma selling everything and heading out on a snowy day and arriving in Oklahoma where it was much warmer.  Ruby became friends with the Cherokee children and learned much of the Cherokee language.  Her four-room schoolhouse was taught by Mennonite “Go Ye Mission” ladies and this is where Ruby first began to learn about God.  She was given a Bible for memorizing 150 Bible verses this was her first bible. 

When World War ll broke out Ruby moved back to Kansas City to be with her sister whose husband was called into service.  Instead of being alone Ruby lived with her sister until after the end of the war.  The two became very close almost mother/daughter relationship and her older sister never had any children.  While in Kansas City Ruby worked to support themselves and the war effort both at a battery manufacturing company and later sewing canvas bags.  Ruby graduated from North Kansas City High School in May of 1946.  Her older brother invited Ruby to come live with them and attend collage in Tahlequah Oklahoma 30 miles from where her brother Eugene pastored a church near Muskogee, Oklahoma.  Eugene teased Ruby that he carpooled to college with good looking ex-sailor named Richard Ashworth.  Her heart did a flip-flop when she saw him.  Shortly after, this ex-sailor committed himself to Christ and two months after meeting Ruby asked to marry her.  They were married on January 4, 1947.  Richard finished college in Tahlequah and began teaching school eventually leading back to his hometown in Muskogee. 

Richard felt that God was calling him into ministry.  This led to moving to Fort Worth Texas to attend seminary.  Richard worked in the aircraft industry while attending seminary, but an industry lay off forced the family now 5 in total with three children, to enter the pastorship earlier than planned.  This led to Kinta, Oklahoma then to Guthrie, Oklahoma to being led to be a missionary pastor in the Pacific Northwest.  The family moved to Caldwell, Idaho on the last day of 1965 fighting icy roads the entire way.  In 1972 Richard became an Area Director of Missions in Southern and Eastern Utah.  Ruby was inducted with Richard by the Southern Baptist Convention to be a home missionary.  This appointment required moving from Caldwell, Idaho to Richfield, Utah.  Time was tough in these areas helping churches get established and Ruby was instrumental in counseling many pastor wives. 

Ruby had fought many battles in her life with falling out of a moving truck in the 1930’s, to surviving a major car accident, two bouts of cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, and a long 8-year goodbye with her husband’s Alzheimer’s.  She never wavered in her faith in God and his provisions.  Although sight and mobility were severely limited, Ruby always prayed for and demonstrated her concern for her, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.  The chief concern was for their wellbeing and relationship with God. 

Ruby passed away on May 27th at the age of 92.  Ruby is survived by Daughters, Pamela (John) Henry, Carol (David) Ball, and Son David (Brenda) Ashworth.  Ruby had 5 grandchildren and 5 greatgrandchildren one just born shortly before she died.  She was blind these last years but took great joy in hearing the new grandchild cry and talking with the others on the phone. 

The family wishes to thank the Karcher Estates in Nampa, and Canyon Home Hospice for their care and support. 

Burial services will be at 1:00 P.M. Thursday July 1, 2021 at the Idaho Veterans Cemetery, Boise, Idaho.  Services are under the direction of the Nampa Funeral Home, Yraguen Chapel.  An online guest book may be signed at www.nampafuneralhome.com in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to https://www.sendrelief.org/ . 

Romans 8:38-39

38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Revelation 21:4

4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

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