Our beloved Ruth Ann Rietman (DuBois) joined our Lord in Glory on Sunday, January 11th, 2026.
There are some people who move through the world quietly changing it, simply by being who they are. Moving through life with a certain optimism that is rare to posses.
If you walked into a room where Ruth was, you felt it right away. That warmth; a sense of ease and safety. Ruth laughed with her whole body and smiled with her whole face. The kind of smile that invited you to sit down, stay awhile, and tell her about your day. And you would. She had a way of drawing people in, of making conversation feel natural, like it was something you’d been meaning to do all along. She was blessed to share 53 wonderful years of marriage with the love of her life, Vern, who preceded her in death. Their partnership was unique and pretty awesome to witness. Built on devotion, hard work, and faith.
It had its bumps, but turned out to be a perfect balance. She was patient and kind, he was warm and funny. Both hard-working. God was at the center of their marriage, guiding their love and shaping a life rooted in humbleness and understanding. I’ve never admired two people more, and they represent what everyone should aspire to, in love and in life. Together they shared and created a family. Family meant pretty much everything to her. She loved her sister Bonnie dearly, and Bonnie’s husband, Larry, held a special place in her life as well. Their family, children and grandchildren included, were never separate in Ruth’s mind. Love, to her, didn’t come in categories. It just expanded. She was the proud mother of Sheri (Mark) and Eric (Aimee), and the most devoted grandmother and great-grandmother you could imagine. Her children, 20 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren were her spark. She never missed a game, a recital, a school event, or a moment that mattered, because if someone she loved was there, then so was she. Her hands were rarely still. She crocheted and sewed with patience and care, creating things meant to last. She loved the color yellow, which somehow explains everything about her. She loved animals, and animals loved her back, drawn instinctively to her gentleness.
Ruth ran a daycare for decades. Beginning in the 1970s, children were in her care year after year, sometimes even generations. I think for a lot of people, she was more than a caregiver; she was a safe place, like a second home. She helped raise countless children simply by loving them well and being someone they could always count on. She lived her faith not in grand gestures, but in quiet consistency. In meals prepared and arms and ears opened. She is so deeply loved, and to the many people that visited, called, sent gifts and flowers, she was so grateful for your love and support. As was the family, a special thank you to the wonderful people at Faith Hospice for showing real tenderness and love with the fragile moment that this was and is. She will be missed in ways words will never fully capture. But Ruth’s life didn’t end; it scattered. It lives on in the children she cared for, the family she nurtured, the love she gave freely, and the warmth we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. If you knew her, you were lucky, and if you loved her, you always will.

The family will greet visitors on Thursday, January 22, from 2 - 4 and 6 - 8 pm at Stroo Funeral Home 1095, 68th St. SE, and Friday, January 23, from 10 - 11 am prior to the service at Good News Baptist Church, 6830 Eastern Avenue  SE, where the funeral service will begin at 11 am. Rev. Mark Lowe will officiate. Interment will be in Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Faith Hospice.