McMillan, Ruth Aleeta Young

Ruth Aleeta Young McMillan, died Tuesday, October 21, 2008, at Warm Hearth Village, Blacksburg, Va. She was born in Junction City, Ore., on April 27, 1916, in a white clapboard house built by her father, George W. Young for his wife, Lilly Appleby, and their eight children of whom Ruth was the youngest.

She was married to Gilbert Lowell McMillan for 58 years, from 1939 to 1997. They met at Oregon Normal School in Monmouth and began their teaching careers in rural Idaho. She continued teaching elementary school in Oregon and southern California, retiring as a reading specialist after 30 years. Her classrooms where decorated with her art and throughout her life she sewed, making clothes, dolls, quilts and other crafts. In retirement she added painting to her crafts.

Ruth and her husband returned to Oregon for several years before moving east in 1996 to be near their daughters, Kathleen McMillan, of Washington, D.C., and Gail McMillan and her husband, Mark Sanders, of Blacksburg, Va.; and their daughters, Nicole and Rachel Sanders.

Her special caregivers, Kathy Hodge and Michelle Thomas, and the caring staff at Showalter, helped ensure her health and happiness for many years. To honor Ruth McMillan’s memory, please make a contribution to Showalter at Warm Hearth, 1060 Showalter Dr., Blacksburg, Va. 24060. Arrangements By McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va.