Ruth Marie Hays was born on February 11, 1926 to Jacob and Susie (Bigbee) Mather on a farm in rural Gove County.  She was the fifth oldest in a family of 12 children.  She graduated from Grinnell High School in 1943.  During WW II, she worked at the Office of Rations in Quinter.  Following the war, she fell in love with Lloyd Hays and they were married on August 11, 1946 in Grinnell.  They started their family farm and ranch shortly thereafter where they provided a loving home for their three children, Ronald, Janice, and Stuart.  Ruth loved the farm life and the outdoors raising a large garden each year and taking daily two-mile walks across the pasture.

Ruth was a lifetime member of Oakley United Methodist Church where she was a member of the Methodist Women's group and taught Sunday School.  Some of her favorite activities were dancing with Lloyd on Saturday nights, playing cards with friends and neighbors, and socializing with her Cameo Club ladies group.  Ruth attended Colby Community college earning a CNA, then worked at Logan County Hospital for many years.  In retirement she discovered a love for quilting and won many ribbons at the county fair.  She and Lloyd enjoyed numerous trips over the years, but spending time with her family was her favorite thing of all.

Ruth passed peacefully on January 5, 2020 in Lakewood, CO with her family at her side.  She is survived by her children, Ronald (Deb) Hays of Fort Morgan, CO, Janice (Steve) Soderlund of Parker, CO, and Stuart (Carla) Hays of Dripping Springs, TX, seven grandchildren, six great grandchildren, and three sisters:  Wilma Taylor, Evelyn Fitz-Roy, and Marjorie Wilson, all of Newton, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Jake and Susie Mather, her husband Lloyd (2005), their young son, Daryl, her brothers, Lee, Buford, Richard, Harold, Gerald, Leslie, Wesley, and her sister, Carol Wilson.

Funeral service: 10:30 a.m. Saturday, January 11, 2020 at the Oakley United Methodist Church with Pastor Dan Hutton, officiating.  Burial will follow in the Oakley Cemetery.  Visitation:  5 – 8 p.m. Friday, January 10 at the church.  The family will receive friends from 5 – 7 p.m. Memorials to the United Methodist Church may be sent in care of Kennedy-Koster Funeral Home, PO Box 221, Oakley 67748.

Sign the online guestbook at www.kennedykosterfh.com.