MOUNT VERNON — Ruth Ball, 97, of Mount Vernon went to be with her Lord and Monday, May 26, 2008, at Westminster-Thurber Retirement Community in Columbus.

Born Ruth Ann Elizabeth Bebout on Sept. 20, 1910, in Wayne Township, Knox County, she was the daughter of the late Jesse R. Bebout and Jeanette (Colgin) Bebout. Ruth graduated from Mount Vernon High School in 1928 where she had the honor of being crowned as the high school’s first Forum Queen. The event was re-celebrated on March 17, 2000, when Ruth was re-crowned at a high school ceremony when the Millennium Queen crowned the First Queen with a “real” tiara to replace the cardboard one she originally received.

Ruth attended Ohio Wesleyan College and was a member of Delta Upsilon Sorority. She graduated from Bethany College, West Virginia, in 1932; and taught school for 14 years in Mount Vernon and Knox County schools. She was a very active, lifelong member of the First Christian Church, Disciples of Christ in Mount Vernon where she served as an elder. Ruth was recipient of the Mount Vernon Exchange Club’s “Golden Deeds” Award.

On Nov. 29, 1934, Ruth married George A. Ball, a lifelong resident and well-known dairy farmer in Knox County. They spent their lives on the Ball Family Farm on Beckley Road, Mount Vernon, a farm that has remained in the family for five generations. They raised their six children on the farm and in 1994 Ruth and George moved to the Country Club Retirement Campus in Mount Vernon where Ruth resided until after George’s death on March 30, 2000. During her residency at the Country Club, Ruth remained very active and involved. She was known to all who lived there, as the self-appointed person who delivered newspapers to the shut-ins, pulling a little red wagon behind her. Soon after George’s death, Ruth moved to Columbus, where she resided and was cared for at Westminster-Thurber Retirement Community. The family extends its deepest appreciation to staff and caregivers at Westminster-Thurber and Senior Independence Hospice for the love and special care given to their mother.

Surviving are her six children, Frederick B. (Susan) Ball of Westerville, G. Andrew (Mary Lee) Ball Jr. of Mount Vernon, Nancy (Jerry) Smart of Hernando, Fla., Mary Jean (Mike) Jake of Oregonia, Ohio, Rebecca (Lenny) Fasulo of Rockledge, Fla., and Daniel C. Ball of Cincinnati; 20 grandchildren; and numerous great-grandchildren. Besides her parents and husband, Ruth was preceded in death by her two sisters, Charlene VanSise and Jean (Yarrington) Kilkenny.

Friends may call Saturday from noon to 2 p.m. at the Flowers-Snyder Funeral Home in Mount Vernon, where services will follow at 2 p.m. Burial will be in Mount Vernon Memorial Gardens.

Memorial contributions can be made to Westminster-Thurber Retirement Center or Senior Independence Hospice, 717 Neil Ave., Columbus, OH 43215-1609.

To send an online condolence to the family, visit www.snyderfuneralhomes.com. The Snyder Funeral Homes of Mount Vernon are honored to serve the family of Ruth Ball.