Ruby Ellen Polf

Many things can be said about Ruby Ellen Polf. Known to friends and acquaintances as a friendly, energetic, empathic and decisive woman, her compassionate nature would always shine through, revealing her charm, warmth and conscientious demeanor. She was warmhearted, gentle and organized in all the things she sought to accomplish. Ruby was a mentor, a natural “teacher” capable of seeing things clearly, leading others and bringing out the best in all of those around her. She generally had a focus on harmony and peace.

Ruby was born on January 1, 1949 at Wilcox Memorial Hospital in Portland, Oregon. Her parents were John and Edith Polf. Ruby was raised in Portland, Oregon. When she was young, Ruby's friends and family found that “straightforward” and “honest” were perfect words to describe her. Even as a child, Ruby demonstrated strong qualities of self-confidence, perceptive ability and a disposition that was enjoyable to those around her.

Ruby grew up with Four siblings whom she was very close with. She had two older brothers, Chriss and Eddie, one older sister, Philis, and one younger sister, Lynn. Ruby was constantly involved in all sorts of activities with her family. She was even-tempered, taking care not to get involved in too many family conflicts. This quality served her well, in perpetually bringing harmony, understanding and a sense of peace to the family. Ruby carried these traits into her adult life and served as one of many reasons why family and friends found her pleasurable and delightful to be around. Ruby was a person who genuinely understood and cared for others, making powerful connections with those she knew.

As a young girl, Ruby was imaginative, ingenious, clever and a “novel” thinker. Regardless of whether her peers were older or younger, or came from different backgrounds, Ruby could easily relate to other kids. She loved going to Church Camp most Summers. In her spare time she liked playing with her many friends and family. Ruby's memorable achievements included her art work. However, to Ruby, the most fun to be had was simply playing and spending time with her many friends.

During her high school years, Ruby had a natural flair for cheering on and applauding just about everyone. She was constantly offering her support and encouragement to fellow members of the groups and activities in which she participated. She did well in school and genuinely enjoyed telling stories in a way that drew people to her. In this way, Ruby had a talent for becoming the center of attention, a kind of social catalyst. Ruby was often found to be the lead person facilitating a group activity, frequently filling the role of being “the life of the party.” Teachers and classmates knew Ruby as an excellent listener. She placed a high value on learning and always understood that there was a new lesson to be grasped waiting for her just around the corner.

Always considered a “good” friend, Ruby sought to understand the things that others enjoyed. For this reason Ruby always seemed to possess a never-ending collection of acquaintances. Ruby’s friends found her easy to know and get along with because of her talent for being socially at ease, adept at conversation, and always amiable in her dealings with others. Ruby would always seek to learn what her friends enjoyed, and she would go out of her way to make sure that their needs were met. Ruby was always seen as the type of person who was the more gracious giver. In fact, she sometimes felt ill at ease when she was the one on the receiving end. Throughout her life she had many friends. While growing up, (and throughout most of her life) some of her best friends were Marlene Harding, her sisters Philis & Lynn, Susan, Debbie, and Betty. Later in life, Ruby made friends with most people she came in contact with. She was very close with many of her friends where she went to Church (Crossroads Community).

On 1967 Ruby married Steve Mobley at the Central Christain Church of Portland, Oregon. Compassionate and devoted, Ruby worked hard to make her new family happy. She was always generous with her time and this meant that Steve came first in Ruby’s book. She was always caring and made certain that she considered Steve’s feelings. By trusting her emotions, Ruby did her best to make sure that both the marriage and home life ran smoothly. This is just one more example of how Ruby was truly a person of empathy.

Ruby’s quality of being a caring and tolerant person who was very accepting of others translated to being a good mother to her children. Ruby shared these values with her One Son, Steven Mobley. Ruby was also blessed with one grandson, Ryan Mobley, and two beautiful great-grandchildren, Shaylynn and John Henry. Anyone that knew Ruby knew how much she loved her grandchildren - Constantly gushing and bragging about them to family and friends. Ruby related well to children of all ages and was able to connect to them on their level. The children always loved her and she was completely and totally devoted to them.

Ruby experienced success in her work life over and over again. Her primary occupation was restaurant and bar management. She was employed for many years with Claudias Tavern, The Multnomah Athletic Club and Colewood National Golf Course. Ruby was well liked by her colleagues and many of them became some of her closest friends over the years. Ruby always made the effort to understand what was needed at work, and was well known by her colleagues as a team player. Ruby took pride in managing her professional responsibilities and seemed to always know what was necessary to successfully complete a project. Ruby was one to take the initiative and her skills at working cooperatively were highly valued. Ruby continually sought to learn what her co-workers did well and how they were most effective, a talent that enabled her to help them develop their own potential.

Because she was organized and methodical, Ruby took great pleasure in her various hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were music, collecting and arranging of dried flowers, family photo scrapbooking, and creating other beautiful pieces for family and friends. Even as a young girl, Ruby would recieve notes from her teachers confirming her budding talents in Art. She also enjoyed the simple things in life - One thing she would love to do in the summertime is hop around from one garage sale to the next - Excited to see what new treasure she might find. And gosh how she loved to dance! She had an extensive record collection and would love to relax while having beautiful music playing in the background. Ruby enjoyed sharing her passions with others and could singularly focus on one hobby at a time.

Ruby derived much satisfaction from sports. Because she was so instinctive and could always grasp the big picture, Ruby delighted in the strategy and inner workings of a competition. Recreational sports included playing in city pool leauges. And let me tell you, she was good. Really good. She also enjoyed memories of going to hockey games with her family while growing up. Ruby was also something of a sports fan and enjoyed watching her favorite teams' events whenever she got the opportunity.

Ruby was well known to others for her ability to naturally and conscientiously move into action to help others, a quality that placed her as an active contributor to many community activities. Charismatic by nature, she was always viewed by others as someone who built bridges, connected to people, and upheld her personal values. Ruby served "always with a smile," on the greeting committee for Crossroads Community Church for many years.

Ruby’s faith was important to her. She was a member of Crossroads Community Church for over twelve years. During that time, she was a greeter and assited at other events as she could. Ruby made many of her famous flower arrangements for members of the church, as well as dontating some for Crossroad's interior design. She loved all of her friends and family at Crossroads. She was compassionate and warm hearted, someone who truly cared for others and that was clearly demonstrated in her work with the congregation.

Ruby enjoyed traveling, and because she was so well organized, she would take on the responsibility of planning and scheduling all of the family vacations. Her gift for keeping things lively meant that vacations with Ruby were always enjoyable. Favorite vacations included traveling to Yellowstone National Park with her family, going to Disneyland with her Son, Steven, and many long motorcycle trips with her then Husband, Steve Curl!

Ruby was a lover of animals and cherished her pets. One of Ruby's favorite was Spooky. Ruby loved all of her pets dearly, but Spooky, well Spooky was the first. Spooky was a dog and loved to chew gum and watch TV. Yes that's right, I said chew gum and watch TV (true story). The next family pet was Tippy. Tippy was a small black and white doggy. Tippy went everywhere with Ruby. Then there was Louie the cat. Louie weighed about 20 Lbs. And was the king of the house. He was ginormous! Then there were Blacky and Sassy, the cat. Ruby had Sassy for many years, up until the Lord took her home. They were best friends for Ruby and she had many of these pets for over 10 years. They were all very special and she considered them all part of the family.

Being the focused and organized person that she was, Ruby had taken care to plan for this part of her life. When that time eventually arrived, Ruby knew exactly what she wanted to do. Ruby retired about eight years ago. Even in retirement, Ruby continued to stay in touch with her old friends and made plenty of new acquaintances. She was active in the community and felt fulfilled.

Ruby passed away on August 24, 2014 at Adventist Medical Center in Portland, Oregon. Ruby had been fighting an ongoing liver disorder. She is survived by her Son, Steven Mobley, Grandson Ryan Mobley, Great-Granchildren Shaylynn and John Henry; Brothers Chriss and Eddie, and her Sisters Philis and Lynn. Services were held at Crossroads Community Church in Vancouver, Washington. Rubys ashes will be spread according to her wishes.

Throughout her life, Ruby was a gregarious and enthusiastic woman. She was generous in sharing her personal attributes, giving and helping those she knew and loved. She would often fill the role of coach, bringing out the best in everyone. She was imaginative, original, tender hearted and easy to get along with. Ruby leaves behind her a legacy of life-long friendships and cherished memories. Everyone whose lives she touched will dearly remember Ruby Ellen Polf.

Service will be on Thursday, September 25, 2014 from 11am-2 pm at Crossroads Church, 7708 NE 78th St. in Vancouver, Washington.