Ruby Barnes

Ruby Louise Barnes, 96, died Monday October 23, 2023 at her daughter’s home in Martin Tennessee.

Ruby was born on a farm near Epping, North Dakota to parents who emigrated from Norway. She was the youngest of 8 children. She attended school in Epping, getting there by horse and buggy and by a horse drawn sleigh in the winter.

Ruby planned to be a secretary and she wanted to learn shorthand. This class was only offered in Williston, a town 22 miles away. For her Senior year of high school, her father loaned her his truck so she could live in Williston, attend school and come back to the farm on the weekends. 

After graduation, her parents encouraged her to take a train to San Francisco. Most of her sisters were already living in California. San Francisco is where she learned about big city life; how to use a pay phone and how to catch a trolley car. She lived in a boarding house with her sister Bernice and got a secretarial job that enabled her to pay her own bills. 

After a few years in San Francisco, her father became ill, so she returned to North Dakota to help her parents. And she missed North Dakota. Ruby soon found a job in Williston as a clerk at the courthouse and after a few more months, she found a better job with an oil company.

One day on the elevator, she met a nice young man from Oklahoma by the name of George Barnes. They chatted during their ride on the elevator and as my mother used to say, “One thing lead to another.” They were married in August of 1954, just before harvest season. Other than no air conditioning, they had a beautiful wedding at the Epping Lutheran Church.

George and Ruby went on to have an interesting life together. They moved quite a bit since George was working on a seismograph crew for Amerada Petroleum. Each of their three children were born in different states: Kansas, Idaho and Oklahoma. While in Tulsa, George was hired by Pennzoil which led to the next move to Calgary, Alberta, Canada and 3 years later to Houston, Texas. The Houston freeways scared Ruby so she navigated for quite awhile using the side streets of Houston to get around the city. As her confidence grew she eventually made her way across town using the freeways. When her youngest was in high school, Ruby decided it was time to go back to work, first at the Houston Chronicle and then at a law firm in downtown Houston. George and Ruby retired in Houston, living in the same house for 49 years. Her neighbors were very dear to her and she missed them all when she moved to Tennessee in the last year of her life. 

For the last 25 years, Ruby was a loyal Houston Astros fan. In her younger days, she was a PTA mom, taught Vacation Bible School and was a Bluebird and Campfire Girl leader for many years. She celebrated all the holidays, loved to travel, and was active in her church, Memorial Drive Lutheran. She served on the MDLC Altar Guild for many years. She loved to bake pies and cookies and collected recipes and cookbooks. At home, she made sure there were always homemade cookies in the cookie jar. She loved to garden and kept her yard in tip top shape. 

She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Martha Johnsrud; her husband, George Barnes; her son, James Barnes; her son-in-law, Curtis Mayhood, and seven siblings, Mabel, Esther, Clarence, Margaret, Elmer, Mildred and Bernice.

She is survived by her daughters, Deborah (John) Stich of Amarillo, TX and Karen Mayhood of Martin, TN; two grandchildren, Heather (Russell) McCown and Briar Johnson; three great-grandchildren, Sterling Johnson, Audrey McCown and John Raleigh McCown. She has many nieces and nephews that she loved dearly and even though they were spread across the country she liked to stay in touch by writing frequent letters.

Ruby was a beautiful person inside and out. She cared deeply for the people around her. She was so kind and always looked for ways to help others. She made an impact on many lives. She will be forever missed. Until we meet again.

A private service will be held in Nowata, Oklahoma and cremains will be interred next to her husband of 41 years in a family burial plot. Memorials may be sent to St. Jude Children’s Hospital or to the charity of your choice.