Ruth Ann King

On Saturday, January 18, 2020, our mother, Ruth Ann (Faulkender) King, went to be with the Lord after spending 7 weeks at Parker Oaks Senior Living in Winnebago, MN.

Ruth was born on the family farm in Spencer, Iowa on June 11, 1936, the second of five kids of Jesse Merle and Frances Magdalena (Yost) Faulkender. She attended country school in Spencer, did chores on the farm, worked as a waitress at the North "Y" Cafe, and graduated from Spencer High School in 1954. She was married to Gary King in 1957.

After living in Spencer, Fostoria, Lake Park, Iowa, Rapid City, South Dakota, Dubuque, Iowa, Worthington, Minnesota, and finally Delaware, Ohio, it was then that Ruth became a single parent at age 35 and moved with her kids, Ron, Rhonda, Julie and Bill, to Elmore, Minnesota in 1971.

Ruth started her working career in Elmore as a waitress at The Colonial Inn (Putt's) and took a part time job at the Green Giant factory in Blue Earth to make ends meet.

In 1974 she took a job at The State Bank of Ledyard, Iowa, and continued working there until she retired in 2000. While working full time at the bank, she also had weekend work at Cindy's Used Clothing Store, Martin's Hardware, Gary's Convenience Store, The Carriage House, and Patsy's Used Clothing Store.

Ruth joined the United Methodist Church in Elmore in the 1970s where she served on several committees, taught Sunday School and was a familiar face in the church kitchen for many, many years. In 2016, Ruth was honored to be recognized as a United Methodist Woman of the Year. Ruth also served on the Elmore City Council and was a back-up helper for Wicks' Funeral Home on occasion when Grandma Marion King wasn't available.

Retiring from The State Bank of Ledyard in 2000 gave Ruthie cherished time to travel to Ham Lake, Rochester, Cottage Grove, and Cleveland, Minnesota to make memories with her kids, her grandkids, Amber, Barrett, Spencer, Clay, Kayla, Carson, great-grandkids Mackenzie, Benjamin, and Brooks, and about a dozen four-legged, furbaby grandkids that Ruth has loved over the years!

Ruth decided to take on a second career after retirement and worked at the Elmore Senior Center, serving the prepared meals that were delivered, or that she would often times have to pick up in Blue Earth, Winnebago or Bricelyn, sometimes driving in snowstorms to make sure lunch was served to the waiting seniors in Elmore.

Ruth's favorite things in life were spending time with her family and friends, playing cards, and making road trips day and night to Diamond Jo’s, Mystic Lake, Grand Casino, and Morton. She loved to play Phase Ten, 500 Rummy, and 31 with her family as well as Buc Eucre and 500 at the Blue Earth Senior Center and Minn-Iowa Golf Course on card night. She also enjoyed her bus trips to Branson, Missouri and Deadwood, and many other places, but trips to Arizona and Mexico, Florida, white-water rafting near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Duluth, and a high school chaperone trip to Winnipeg stand out.

Ruth is survived by her sons, Ron (Linda) King of Ham Lake, MN, Bill and partner Courtney of Cleveland, MN, daughters, Rhonda (Jay) Rosburg, of Byron, MN and Julie (Mark) Diedrich of Cottage Grove, MN; grandsons, Barrett (Denise) Bartos, Isanti, MN, Spencer Diedrich and Clay Diedrich, Cottage Grove, MN, and Carson King, Cleveland; granddaughters Amber (Dave) Condon of Lino Lakes, MN and Kayla King, Cleveland, MN; great-grandson Ben Condon and great-granddaughters Mackenzie Condon and Brooks Bartos; brothers Robert (Sharon) Faulkender of Spencer IA, Roger Faulkender of Sioux Falls, SD, sister-in-law, Ardelle Faulkender of Spencer Iowa, many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews……and many, many special friends, neighbors, and former co-workers.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Delores Ellenwood Sebastian, her brother Marvin Faulkender, other family members and special friends.

A graveside service will be held in the spring in Langdon, Iowa. Ruth loved a party and loved to socialize, and she made the decision to have a LIVING Celebration of Life party at Elmore United Methodist Church on November 3, 2019, instead of having a funeral where "people would be sad and crying". She made a great choice! The group at the church who organized and prepared her celebration, the music, the scriptures that were read, the clean-up crew.....so many helpers who made Mom's vision a reality, did a remarkable job. It was an incredible day and would never have been possible without the amazing Pastors and wonderful, giving folks. And Ruth's kids can barely put into words their gratitude for the incredible care, respect, compassion, dedication, and love given to our mom by the Parker Oaks Resident Assistants and nurses, and the UHD Hospice team. They go above and beyond and truly are God's angels on earth.

Memorials preferred to Elmore United Methodist Church, 311 Mondale Street, Elmore, MN 56027, UHD Hospice 125 South Main Street, Blue Earth, MN 56013, and Interfaith Caregivers, 301 North Main Street, Blue Earth, MN 56013.