Ruth Mary (McCann) Fowler

Ruth Fowler was born in Chicago on March 9, 1928, and went to her Heavenly Home on February 16, 2023, on Hilton Head Island, SC. Mom was just shy of her 95th birthday.

Mom was born in Chicago in the late 1920's, moved to Detroit when she was 2, and then moved to Asheville, North Carolina when she was 12. In 1949, Mom graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill as part of the first women's under-graduate class. Previously, women could only be admitted to the university as graduate students. She relocated to New York City to be with her beloved older sister in 1951, united again with Grandma and Grandpa when they relocated to NYC from Asheville, met and married Dad and gave birth to their four children, was widowed and then met and married Walter J. Fowler. In 1998, after Walter died, she moved to Park Ridge, IL, to be a wonderful Grammy, and then in 2021 moved to her final resting place on Hilton Head, South Carolina, to be the best Grammy again.

When Mom got to NYC, she went to Pratt Institute and studied commercial art. Mom often told of her "Mad Men" experiences in the 50's working at the C.L. Miller advertising firm where she also met our dad. While she was home raising her four children, with her characteristic resourceful way, Mom approached the Women's Auxiliary to find a creative outlet and earn income. She made tea loaves of bread and unique, mixed media such as embroidered Christmas ornaments and framed children's artwork. Mom often told the story of how one woman who shopped at the Women's Auxiliary said, "I will buy anything this woman makes." She approached our grammar school principal and proposed offering piano lessons for the students. Many of our friends signed up for the three-dollar, thirty-minute lessons; one of JoAnne's classmates recently told Jo that our mom instilled in her a love for music and the piano.

As we grew older, Mom went back to the corporate world of work, first working at General Foods and the March of Dimes in White Plains. Ultimately, Mom landed her dream job in the city working for the senior financial advisor to the Rockefeller Family, J. Richardson Dilworth. After Mr. Dilworth's retirement, Mom transferred to Laurance Rockefeller's office on the 56th floor of 30 Rock. Until Mom's retirement at the age of 70, she acted as assistant to the author of Mr. Laurance's biography, "Catalyst for Conservation," a book in which Mom's contribution was acknowledged and appreciated.

Mom was an optimistic, creative, principled free spirit, whose values rested on family, faith, and fun. She was a gentle soul who spoke softly yet lived life "out loud." She was a devout Catholic and an active church member. In Park Ridge, she sang in the church choir, did charitable work with the Mary & Martha Club, and volunteered with the Center of Concern with an assignment to visit a woman in her 90's - Mom was in her 80's at the time. One of Mom's favorite phrases was, "How can I help?"

Mom was a lifelong learner. She first tried skiing at the age of 56, learned to play billiards and to tap dance in her late 70's - one night her downstairs neighbor knocked on her door to see what all the tap-tap-tapping was about, and Mom had to confess that she'd been tap dancing in the kitchen. What a great visual!

Mom had many friends everywhere she lived. It was important that she had her own life, her own friends, her own functions to attend, and her own fun to be had. She instructed us all at her 90th birthday celebration to "say yes to fun." And, she did not just talk the talk; she walked the walk. Whether it was Sunday dinner with the family, watching a silly movie and laughing uproariously together, or taking a trip to Aruba, China, France, Hawaii, Italy, Ireland, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Turks & Caicos, and beyond, Mom was always ready for fun and adventure. Her greatest joy was doing anything with Walter, and her kids and grandkids.

Mom kept her mind open, and sharp, by reading and engaging in discussions on current events with her contemporaries at the Park Ridge Senior Center. Her role as Grammy also kept her sharp, and she was thrilled to be able to meet and hold her great-grandson. She loved to be the person to take her granddaughters to Krispy Kreme to get the free donuts that were given for A's on their report cards. She also loved taking them to Old Country Buffet or Olive Garden where the three of them would indulge in a feast over several hours - only Grammy would have the patience to do that! Mom loved watching her grandson play baseball and, recently, was so excited by Carson's weightlifting skills and accomplishments.

Mom was musical to her core - in her laugh, in how she could play the piano and sing harmonies so easily. She loved the symphony - especially the music of Mozart. She loved going to a piano bar, singing in a choir, or stopping to listen to a busker on the street. She loved to dance, studying ballet in her youth, and loved to hit the dance floor with Walter, swaying to music from the Great American Songbook.

Mom cultivated her artistic talents and passion her whole life. She learned to knit, she sewed clothes, including our Halloween costumes. She belonged to the Brooklyn Poetry Circle with her dear friend Joan Geier, and won 1st Prize for one of her poems. She taught herself calligraphy in her later years, and attended art class and learned how to draw Zentangles.

Mom was hip; she had an open mind to new ideas and would let you know what she was thinking. She appreciated the beauty of nature and the inherent beauty of people. Mom had style; she dressed fashionably, with hair coifed and makeup spot-on, and when you took a picture of her, she stood with her ankles together. At a wedding, Mom would be one of the first ones to get up and dance with the younger set to Kool & The Gang's "Celebration." Mom loved that song!

It may be our sadness to lose Mom and not get to see her every day, to talk to her on the telephone, to visit her wherever she is, to go on a trip with her, to do any of the many things we have done with Mom over the decades. It is our true joy, however, to know that Mom has reached her Heavenly Home, that she is with God, Jesus, Mary, all the angels, and all those who already left this world and have been waiting all this time to see her again. What was recently said of Queen Elizabeth rings equally true for Mom, "We Shall Not Know Her Like Again."

Left to cherish her memories and carry on her legacy of love are her children, Chris (Robin), Anne (Kevin), JoAnne (Alan), Frances (Omar); grandchildren, Carolyn, Morgan (Ankur), Carson; great grandchild, Kieran; as well as her sister-in-law, nieces, nephews, and friends. Mom is predeceased by her beloved parents and sister, Gladys, John H., Helen; by our dad, George L. O'Reilly and in-laws; and by Mom's second husband, Walter J. Fowler.