Ruth M. Ritenour

Ruth M. Ritenour, age 84, of New Philadelphia, died unexpectedly Friday, Dec. 23, 2011, in her home.

Born Sept. 2, 1927, in Canonsburg, PA, she was a daughter of the late Arnold and Therma Mae Campbell Pease. Ruth moved with her family at a young age to New Philadelphia where she graduated from high school in 1946. As a young lady, she worked as a telephone operator, and then as a sales person for the former Ash Hat Shop and Jaffe's Ladies' Apparel. Ruth married William H. "Bill" Ritenour on Dec. 6, 1947, and the couple shared sixty years of marriage, and reared three children, before Bill's passing in 2008.

Ruth and Bill enjoyed dancing, and were members of the New Town Cloggers. She enjoyed gardening and growing flowers, especially dahlias. She was also fond of going out to eat, and above all, relished time spent with her family.

Survivors include her daughter, Robyn (Jerry) Page of Stone Creek; her two sons, Jeff (fiance, Sue Hardesty) Ritenour of Coshocton, and Brad (Deborah) Ritenour of Dover; five grandchildren, Johnalee (Troy) Weller, Jerry (Meghann) Page Jr., Nathan, Amanda, and Bradley Ritenour; seven great-grandchildren; a sister, Helen Lynn of Seneca, PA; two brothers, Wilbert Leroy Pease of Arizona, and William Pease of New Philadelphia; several nieces and nephews.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her beloved husband Bill; a sister, Therma Mae Ritenour; and by two brothers, Ernest and Charles Pease.

A funeral service will be held Wednesday, Dec. 28, at 11 a.m., in the Toland-Herzig Funeral Home & Crematory, 246 E. High Ave., New Philadelphia, with Pastor Dan Price officiating. Burial will be later, following cremation, in Evergreen Burial Park, New Philadelphia. Immediately following the service, there will be a luncheon in the Moose Lodge, 490 S. Tuscarawas Ave., Dover. Family and friends are invited to call at the funeral home on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 5 8 p.m. To sign an online guestbook and share a fond memory of Ruth, please visit the Obituaries and Flowers link on the funeral home's website.

The family suggests that contributions in Ruth's memory be made to the American Heart Association, P.O. Box 15120, Chicago, IL 60693.