Ruth Vandenburg Loudermilch, 94 passed peacefully at the Hospice of the Fisher Home in Amherst, MA. on January 1, 2020. She had been residing at the Arbors of Greenfield for the past five years.
Born in Springfield, MA on June 13, 1925, Ruth was the daughter of Gerard Vandenburg and Bessie L. (Dowd.) She grew up and attended schools in West Springfield. In 1947 she graduated from Westfield State College with a teaching degree. On June 10, 1947 she married Robert C. Loudermilch, a West Point graduate and member of the 11th Airborne Division stationed in Japan, while he was on leave in the US. Several months after their wedding, Ruth traveled to Japan to be reunited with her husband. After Robert’s retirement from the military and years as an industrial electrical engineer the family moved to Scituate MA where they resided for 37 years. In 2002, Ruth and her husband moved to South Deerfield to be close to family.
Ruth is predeceased by her husband Robert who passed on March 1, 2011.
Ruth was a second grade teacher at the Cushing Elementary School in Scituate for 25 years. During summer vacation breaks she commuted back and forth to Chestnut Hill eventually earning a master’s degree in English from Boston College.
Ruth enjoyed reading, gardening, walking on the beach, playing bridge and skiing.
Survivors include sons Mark Loudermilch and his wife Joanne of Tulum Mexico and Brian Loudermilch of Nashua NH and daughters Lynn Andersen and her husband Richard of Littleton MA and Jane Plumley and her husband Willard of South Deerfield and six grandchildren.
A Memorial Mass will be held on Saturday, January 11 at 10:00 am, at Holy Trinity Church in Greenfield. Burial will be at the convenience of the family at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be sent to the YMCA in Greenfield, 451 Main St., Greenfield, MA 01301
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