Ruth was born on December 5, 1932, the youngest of the two children born to Lawrence and Christine (Matthiesen) Crandall. She spent her childhood in the small town of Webberville, living first downtown by the fire hall, then moving to Summit Street, across from the then Baptist Church.
She was a proud General Motors employee, starting in 1950 at the age of eighteen. She was unique at that time, as many of her contemporaries didn’t work outside of the home. She spent most of her working years in Payroll and Human Resources. She retired in October, 1995, with 44+ years of service. At the time of her retirement, she had the most service time in the entire Human Resources department.
Ruth was a lifelong member of the Webberville United Methodist Church, where she sang in the choir and became the church organist, a position that she filled for over forty years. She had a reputation of moving the hymns along, so that they sounded joyful! Ruth also served in many capacities in the United Methodist Women.
She was an avid quilter, and, like most quilters, had an entire room filled with yards of fabric, lots of pins and needles, sewing machine(s), and multiple other tools. It was often joked that she could open her own quilting store and run it out of her house! Her quilts were meticulously assembled and given as gifts, which were treasured keepsakes for those who received them.
However, it was Ruth’s cooking for the family get-togethers that everyone will remember. She was an excellent cook, and leaves behind a cookbook full of her favorite, no-doubt-this-will-be-good recipes. Many of the items that she made will continue to be prepared for holidays to come. Hopefully, they can be made with the same skill and love as she put into them.
Ruth was preceded in death by her husband, Neil; her parents; and brother, Glen. She is survived by her daughter, Karen (Timothy) Smith; son, Kevin (Michael Siebenmark) West; granddaughter, Ashleigh (Michael) Kunzelman; and great-grandchildren, Mason, Caden and Zoey.
A memorial service for Ruth will be held on Thursday, September 17, 2026 at the Webberville United Methodist Church. Visitation will begin at 10:00 a.m., followed by the service at 11:00 a.m. A luncheon is planned after the service.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Webberville United Methodist Church, 4215 Holt Road, Webberville, MI, 48892.
