Tweeten, Ruth Ione (1925-2015)
TWEETEN, HEIMDAL, SUBY, OLSEN, THOMAS, HAGEN, ARTHUR, GILBERTSON, JOHNSON, HOLTAN
Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 7/29/2015 at 22:03:16
Ruth Ione Tweeten
(September 11, 1925 - July 21, 2015)Ruth Tweeten, 89, of Lake Mills, Iowa, died peacefully on Tuesday, July 21, 2015, at the Muse Norris Hospice Inpatient Unit in Mason City, Iowa.
Ruth Ione (Heimdal) Tweeten was born on September 11, 1925, to Arthur and Luella (Suby) Heimdal. Growing up on a farm near Joice, Iowa, she had two sisters and one brother. She attended Larson Country School and then graduated from Joice High School. Next, she enrolled at Hamilton Business College in Mason City, Iowa. Afterwards, she worked at the bank in Hanlontown before taking care of her mother during her recovery from surgery.
Contributing to the war effort, Ruth worked at an airplane factory in Chicago until the war ended. Then, for a short time, she worked at Sun Manufacturing in Chicago. After returning to Hamilton Business College, she worked as a receptionist and telephone switchboard operator at Park Hospital in Mason City.
On April 3, 1949, Ruth married James LeRoy Tweeten, her high school sweetheart, at Beaver Creek Lutheran Church, rural Joice. A member of its congregation until the church was moved in 2000, Ruth served the Beaver Creek community in many capacities. As church organist and accompanist, she enhanced our worship experience.
Jim and Ruth lived and farmed near Joice until 1982 when they moved to Lake Mills. They had two children, Debra Jane and William James.
A 4-H leader, Ruth helped many girls learn vital homemaking skills. A skillful and creative seamstress, she sewed for her family, making many beautiful quilts and patching jeans. In addition, her handwork included crocheted afghans, embroidered quilts, cross-stitching, and numerous pieces of elegant hardanger as well as Christmas stockings for all her descendants including new baby Anna.
She supported many community activities by bringing food and volunteering. From teaching English to a Vietnamese refugee, to square dancing with fourth graders, she played many roles. In addition, she hosted many family dinners as well as yearly New Year’s Eve parties, Fourth of July breakfasts, and other holiday events. She, always, had baked goodies on hand. Her and Jim‘s hospitality, often, uplifted those who were going through a tough time, extending the love of Jesus to others.
Jim and Ruth enjoyed traveling all over the U.S and Canada as well as overseas to eleven European countries and Taiwan and wintering in Texas. Jim often said, “Ruth and I always enjoy each other’s company.”
Ruth enjoyed beautiful dishes, reminding us of her hospitality; cute jackets, reminding us of how she brightened our lives; and harmonious music, reminding us of her love for God and his creative power. She blessed the lives of many!
Those left to cherish her memory include her husband, James; her daughter and son-in-law, Debra and Scott Olsen, of Kirksville, Missouri, her grandson, Erik Olsen, and his fiancée, Mandy Besemer, of St. Louis, Missouri; her granddaughter, Mindy, and her husband, Robert Thomas, and great-grandchildren, Maxus and Sarah, of Herman, Nebraska; her son and daughter-in-law, Bill and Linda Tweeten, of Joice, Iowa; her grandson, Joshua, and his wife, Erica Tweeten, and great-grandchildren Nora, Sophia, and James, of Austin, Minnesota; her grandson, Jacob Tweeten, of Lake Mills, her grandson, Tyler, and his wife, Lindsay Tweeten, and great-granddaughter, Anna, of Austin, Minnesota; her sister, Carole, and her husband, Vern Hagen, of Lake Mills; her sister-in-law, Sylvia Heimdal, of Joice, Iowa; and her brothers-in-law and their wives, Stanley and Joyce Tweeten, of Manly, Iowa, Luther and Eloyce Tweeten, of Hillard, Ohio, and Maynard and Marilyn Tweeten, of Joice, Iowa; as well as many nieces, nephews, and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents: Arthur and Luella Heimdal; her siblings: Sybil, and her husband, Harold Arthur, and Paul Heimdal; and her in-laws: Alvin and Cecel and Mattie Tweeten, Olive and Leonard Gilbertson, Komer and Marian Johnson, Ruth and Stanford Holtan, and Bess Tweeten.
Funeral services will be held at 10:30 AM on Friday, July 24, 2015, at Salem Lutheran Church in Lake Mills with Pastor Melinda McCluskey officiating. Burial will follow in Beaver Creek Lutheran Cemetery, rural Joice. Visitation for Ruth will be on Thursday, July 23, 2015, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at the Mittelstadt Funeral Home, 902 East Main Street, Lake Mills, and will continue one hour prior to services at the church on Friday. Memorials may be directed to Hospice of North Iowa, 232 2nd St. SE, Mason City, Iowa, 50401; or to the Beaver Creek Cemetery Association, c/o Glenn Fjeld, 194 375th St., Joice, Iowa, 50446.
Copyright © 2015, Mittelstadt Funeral Home
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