Tena L. (Gruis) RUITER

RUITER, MEINDERS, KESSLER, NASH, GRUIS, STILLE

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 1/23/2007 at 14:10:36

MASON CITY GLOBE GAZETTE
01/14/1996

Tena L. Ruiter, 91, of Clear Lake, formerly of Meservey, died Saturday (Jan. 13, 1996) at Oakwood Care Center in Clear Lake. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 16, 1996, at Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, 101 N. Fourth St. The Rev. Rodney Meester of First Reformed Church, Meservey, will officiate. Burial will be in the Meservey Cemetery. Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday and one hour prior to service time Tuesday at the funeral chapel.

Tena L. Ruiter was born Jan. 19, 1904, in rural Meservey, the daughter of Jacob and Louise (Meinders) Gruis. She attended and received her education in the rural country schools of Meservey. She was united in marriage to Fred Ruiter on June 6, 1925, in Belmond. He preceded her in death on Jan. 5, 1988. After their marriage together they farmed around the Meservey area and she also drove school bus for the Meservey school system. The family also farmed in the Grafton and Ventura area until they retired
and moved to Clear Lake. She then worked at Carroll's Cafe until her retirement. She enjoyed cooking, scrap books, crafts, gardening, Crocheting and reading, but her great love and enjoyment was her family, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was a member of United Methodist Church, Clear Lake.

Survivors include four daughters, Viola Kessler and her husband, Raymond, of Meservey, Leona Orvick and her husband, Hubert, of Forest City, Maurine Nash and her husband, Don, of Cedar Rapids, and Diane Ruiter of Mason City; two sons, LuVern Ruiter and his wife, Dorothy, of Thornton, and Dale Ruiter of Raymond; nine grandchildren and six great-grandchildren; one sister, Minnie Stille of Thornton; and one stepsister, Martha Ruiter of Goldfield; as well as other relatives and friends. Besides her husband, she was also preceded in death by her parents, four brothers, one sister, one half-brother, and two stepbrothers.