Ruby Colleene Taylor

Ruby Colleene Taylor (known to most as “Colleene”), was born in Austin, Texas on November 27, 1934, and was reunited with her beloved mother and two brothers on November 7, 2023 at the age of 88. Colleene was a lover of all things in nature and especially her beloved homeplace named after her grandparents, “The Colley Ranch”, where she lived for the majority of her life. She could identify every plant and tree on the ranch by their obscure scientific name, and she knew every nook and cranny of the land.

She had a great love for her church and for serving people. She loved to be “the greeter” and welcome newcomers and old-timers alike with a friendly, warm smile. She loved singing in the choir and knew the words to every single country gospel chorus and hymn. She sang a beautiful harmony as a strong alto. Her favorite song was the classic Christian hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus”.

Colleene was a fixture in the lives of her two first cousins, Barbara Dugone and Jo Leslie, and their families, always joining them in family festivities, dinners, and sing-alongs. She was generous with her time and spent many an afternoon searching for tadpoles and minnows in Sandy Creek with her cousin’s young children, who adored Colleene. They had fun exploring the hills, styling Colleene’s hair and putting on makeup and dressing her. She was forever a great sport and provided hours of free babysitting and true kinship to this younger generation.

For many years, she enjoyed co-hosting dozens of hunters who would assemble on the ranch in the late fall for deer season, which also included scrumptious meals around the campfire and lots of singing. In fact, the “Round Up” on the eve of the opening of the Texas deer season was one of the highlights of every year.

Colleene was devoted to her mother, Ruby Taylor. She and Ruby shared the stone cottage on the Colley Ranch that her grandfather built until Ruby’s death in 2002. They were collectors of many things, including antique furniture, an old player piano, historic magazines and books, and glassware. They were incredible horticulturalists who harvested fields of Bluebonnets each year, along with many other native Texas wildflowers. When Colleene was a teenager, she was bitten by a venomous copperhead and was so resilient that she survived without medical treatment. She was truly one with nature.

The family would like to invite the public to an informal gathering at Glad Tidings Assembly of God church in Leander, Texas on Saturday, December 2nd at 2pm, where there will be a brief message, singing and a time to share memories of our dear sister in Christ, Colleene.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.wcfishleander.com for the Taylor family.