Ruth is survived by her husband of 70 years, Nolan Causby, and her three children: Cindy Causby and spouse Curt Crowhurst, Roger Causby and spouse Emily Causby, and Lynn Allen and spouse Tim Allen. In addition to her immediate family, she is also survived by 2 sisters, Rosalee Davis and Joann Miller, 3 grandchildren, 6 great-grandchildren, as well as many nieces, nephews.
Ruth was born in her family home in March 1936 in Jonas Ridge, NC. When she was 5, the family moved to Morganton.
She started working when she was 15 years old at Dolly Hosiery Mill, but when they found out she was 15, they had to let her go. They did, however, say that when you turn 16, come back and we’ll hire you and that is exactly what she did. Needless-to-say, she became an independent and hard-working woman at a very young age.
Ruth met the love of her life on a blind date in 1953 and never looked back. A year after they met, Nolan proposed to her on Christmas Eve and they married the following June. They celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary on June 5th, 2024.
Ruth was a devoted wife and mother to not only her 3 children, but to her niece, Patty Frye and little sister, Joann Miller. She and her husband welcomed Patty and Joann into their home and raised them as one of their own, creating a family of 5 children.
Later on, Ruth’s job was to clean the Drexel Medical Center offices. Dr. Dellinger saw potential in her and asked her if she would consider working in the clinic. She went to Western Piedmont Community College and earned a certificate in nursing and became Dr. Dellinger’s nurse. She did this until she retired in 1998.
For fun, and perhaps a business opportunity, Ruth opened a ceramic shop known as The World of Ceramics. She was quite successful by selling the raw product (greenware), paints and supplies. In addition to this, she taught ceramic classes and made many friends along the way. A few years later, Ruth took a porcelain doll class and became skilled at making porcelain dolls. She loved doing this and loved making their clothes as well. She often made clothes for her children, so she carried on her love of sewing and crafting until late in her life. Ruth loved dolls of all kinds having accumulated over 100 dolls at the time of her death. Some of those she made and some she bought. No doll was too big or too small.
A big part of Ruth’s life was devoting time to the youth of Amherst Baptist Church. She assisted in fundraising to help support the children’s travels and worked with them in their various projects. She also taught children in Sunday School as well as Vacation Bible School.
The best way to describe Ruth is she was caring, kind, loving, devoted, trusting, compassionate, creative, and independent. She was a busy woman, never one to simply sit around, always looking for something to do, whether it was keeping a clean home, cooking, crafting, sewing, painting, working puzzles (word or jigsaw), etc. etc. She lived the life she wanted her children to live, and she instilled in all of us a desire to be independent and on our own.
Her husband has said many times “the minute I saw her red hair, I was hooked.” He recently commented “at the end of the day, I had the best woman I could have ever had.” He could not imagine spending his life with anyone else.
Ruth’s advice to the younger generation is to “learn to love and live the way God wants you to”. To all of us who knew her, that is exactly how she lived.
The family will receive friends at Amherst Baptist Church on Sunday, March 9th, from 1:00 – 2:00. Her Celebration of Life will begin at 2:00, followed by graveside services at Burke Memorial Park.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to Amherst Baptist Church with a note to add to the Children’s Ministry. Their address is: PO Box 276, Drexel NC 28619-0276.
Kirksey Funeral Home is honored to be assisting the Causby family. Condolences and memories may be emailed through our website: www.kirkseyfh.com.
