She was born on October 4th, 1931, in Wildie, Kentucky, to the late Samuel E. and Anna Belle Forsythe. After moving north to Hamilton, Ohio, as a child, Ruth still spent summers with family down in the hills of Kentucky where she was born. Ruth attended Fairfield High School, where she played on the basketball team and classmates nicknamed her “Peerless”. She graduated in 1949. On August 25th, 1949, she married Charles (Chuck) E. Bishop in Charleston, South Carolina. They spent the first 20 years of their marriage traveling with Chuck’s career in the U.S. Navy throughout the southern U.S., and in the Panama Canal Zone. Ruth remembered fondly the jobs she took along the way. She was especially fond of working on a shrimp dock in Brunswick, Georgia. Upon their return to Ohio, Ruth worked at Champion Knightsbridge and was one of the company’s first female supervisors. In retirement, she and Chuck traveled the country, and attended annual ship reunions for the U.S.S. Gherardi. Ruth was preceded in death by her dear husband Chuck, daughter Teresa, brothers Jim, Don and Randall, and parents Sam and Anna. She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law Lynda and Steve Richardson, son and daughter-in-law Tom and Liz Bishop, grandchildren Stephanie (Casey) Hollifield, Sherri (Scott) Reinhard, Steve Richardson II and Finn Bishop, great-grandchildren Bryan Richardson, Casey (Tiffany) Hollifield, Josh Combs, Jared Combs, Jennifer Reinhard, Liam Hollifield and Clay Hollifield, great-great-grandchildren Tabitha Richardson, Drake Hollifield, Aiden Richardson, Noah Hollifield and Abigail Ruth Hollifield, best friend Vivian Downs, brother Bob Forsythe, plus many cousins, nephews and nieces. She will be remembered as the steady hub of the Bishop family, and her work ethic and inner strength, as well as for a quick wit and warm heart. A gathering will be held on Friday, January 31st, 2020, from 5:30pm to 7:30pm, at the Rose Hill Funeral Home, 2565 Princeton Rd, Hamilton, OH 45011, with a brief service to follow. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to Hospice of Southwest Ohio.
