Ruth Vineyard Cooner

(December 1, 1928 – June 29, 2024)

Ruth Vineyard Cooner of Mobile peacefully passed away on Saturday, June 29, 2024. She was preceded in death by her husband, William Hollis “Bill” Cooner; her parents, Rodney Cecil Vineyard and Jessie deWinter Ross; her sister, Marian Vineyard Cranford of Birmingham; and her step-father, Cecil Hubert “Doctor” Ross of Mobile. Ruth is survived by her son, Jonathan Hollis “Jon” Cooner, Sr. (Cami) of Mobile; her grandchildren, Jonathan Hollis “Hollis” Cooner, Jr. of Oxford, Mississippi, and Margaret Ayres “Maggie” Cooner of Nashville, Tennessee; and her nieces, Ruth Cranford Ash (Chuck) of Birmingham and Elizabeth Cranford Carlson of Houston, Texas.

Born in Mobile in 1928, Ruth’s father passed away when she was only six weeks old. She was fortunate to grow up in a large, warm extended family, surrounded by her grandmother, mother, step-father and numerous aunts and uncles, who lived near each other in the South Catherine Street area of Mobile. She was athletic and spent her youth horseback riding and sailing her cat boat, swimming and rowing in Mobile Bay. Her lifelong friends fondly remember the warm summer days they spent as a group of carefree high-school girls, riding in a convertible through the streets of Mobile.

Ruth graduated from Murphy High School in 1946 and earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, in 1951. After college, she moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and later met Bill on a blind date. She married Bill in January, 1958, and they lived in Philadelphia while Bill completed his urology residency. Bill entered active service with the Air Force after completing his residency, and after Jon’s birth, Ruth joined him at his stations, first at Clark Air Base Hospital in the Philippines, and then Maxwell Air Force Base Hospital in Montgomery a few years later. The family moved to Mobile when Bill entered private urology practice in 1965. Ruth and Bill resided in Mobile for the rest of their lives except for a brief period in the early 1990s when Bill accepted a teaching position with Emory University Hospital in Atlanta shortly before his death in 1994.

During her marriage, Ruth devoted herself to managing the home needs of her family and supporting Bill’s professional endeavors across the globe. It has been said of Bill that “he devoted his life to caring for others.” He could not have achieved what he did without Ruth’s support and contributions to his efforts.

After Bill passed in 1994, Ruth chose a quieter life, spending most of her time at home, writing in her daily journal, corresponding with relatives across the U.S., and enjoying the company of her constant companion, her beloved Jack Russell terrier.

Ruth was a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, a long-time supporter of the Mobile Symphony and Mobile Opera, and a member of The National Society of Colonial Dames XVII Century, Junior League of Mobile, and mystic societies.

The family wishes to thank Springhill Senior Residence and Gentiva Hospice of Mobile for their loving, professional and attentive care.

A service in celebration of Ruth’s life will be held in the chapel at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Mobile, Alabama, on Thursday, July 11 at 11:00 a.m. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service in the church’s parish hall. In lieu of flowers, please direct donations to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church or the charity of your choice.