OBITUARY

Name:   Ruth Naomi (Dempsey) Ross

From:  The Billings Gazette, Billings, Montana
Date:  Tuesday, October 19, 2004

GILLETTE - Memorial services for Gillette resident Ruth Naomi Ross, 85, will be conducted at 10 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 21, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Gillette by Pastor Scott Firminhac.

Cremation has taken place and inurnment will follow in Mount Pisgah Cemetery in Gillette.

She died Oct. 13, 2004, at her home, of natural causes.

Born March 9, 1919, in Clay Center, Neb., she was one of seven children of Will and Agnes (Galusha) Dempsey; was raised and educated on the family farm near Alliance, Neb.

She received her primary education in a country school near the farm; worked various jobs, including on a large farm in Illinois, then visited her brother in Gillette. She stayed and took a job with the local dry-cleaning service, where she met Keith Ross.

The couple was married Sept. 15, 1945, in Billings, Mont.  They lived and worked on area ranches until moving into Gillette so their sons could attend school.

She enjoyed working when she could and caring for her family. The couple operated the only plant nursery in Gillette for many years and her love for flowers and growing plants of all types remained with her until she died.

After her husband's death in 1992, after 47 years of marriage, she became quite active in her local church. She loved making quilts and, especially, embroidering tea towels.

Survivors include her son, Perry Ross of Gillette; stepson, David Ross of Moorcroft; a daughter-in-law; brother, Emery Dempsey of Alliance; sister, Blanche Sokol of Valentine, Neb.; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents; a son, Leonard Dempsey, in 1976; and four siblings.

Memorials may benefit Trinity Lutheran Church, in care of Stevenson-Wilson Funeral Home, 219 W. Fifth St., Gillette, WY 82716.