Ruth Warren Cohen

Ruth W. Cohen, born November 21, 1925 in Fall River, Mass., has passed away on June 20, 2024 in Boston, Mass. Ruth was raised in Providence, R.I., by her parents Nathan and Jenny Warren, graduated from Brown University with the class of ’46, and married Leslie B. Cohen in 1947. They lived in New York City, Mt. Gilead, N.C. and Charlotte, N.C., where she and Leslie raised their five children. She later lived in Boca Raton, Fla. Ruth was predeceased by her husband, and by her son Sanford, and is survived by children Amy, of Brookline, Mass.; Lawrence, of Boulder, Colo.; Betty Ann of Yakima, Wash.; and Peter, of New York, N.Y.; son-in-law Miles Wagner and daughter-in-law Holly Schneier, and four grandchildren: Aleksei Wagner, Stewart Wagner, Joanna Cohen and Alexander Cohen.

Ruth’s parents, Nathan and Jenny, were both born in Ukraine, and met in America. Jenny came to the America with her sister when she was a teenager, while Nathan had been a soldier, a horse trainer and a riverboat pilot in the old country. Nathan sold apples from a horse-drawn cart in Fall River, eventually building the business into Nathan Warren and Sons, a large produce distributor based in Providence.

When Ruth graduated from Providence Classical High School, she had intended to attend Smith College, but as her brothers David, Harold and her twin Bill were all in the war, she switched instead to Brown, to stay closer to home. She was especially close to her brothers, and looked up to them for the rest of her life. She also made a point of dispensing Nathan’s moral philosophy to her children.

At Brown, Ruth majored in economics, switching from archeology due to the limited prospects of going on digs during the war. She treasured her time at Brown and was a proud alumna. It was at Brown where Ruth met Leslie B. Cohen, from New York. Leslie was returning from the army to resume his education. They married soon after college, and set up life in New York City.

The family, now with Amy and Larry, moved to Mt. Gilead, a small town where they truly enjoyed living. But, the big city beckoned, and they moved to Charlotte, now with Betty Ann and Sandy too. Peter was born a few years later.

Ruth and family spent most of each summer at her parents’ beach house in Touisset Point, R.I., up until her parents moved permanently to Florida. The family had a home there since the 1930’s.

Ruth and her brothers were all gifted athletes. Ruth was a good tennis player, but especially excelled at golf, which she enjoyed playing with her father. She went on to win many club tournaments and to win the amateur women’s golf championship of North Carolina.

Ruth was an open and curious person. She had the knack for making instant friends by showing an interest and care for who they were, what they do and what their circumstances were. These traits helped her excel as a needlepoint shop owner and educator, and later, as a real estate broker. It was not unusual to find someone at the Thanksgiving table whom she met selling them a house.

After Leslie passed away and Ruth retired from real estate, she moved to Boca Raton to live for the next 20 years.

Ruth was so incredibly proud of her four grandchildren.

Ruth always had an interest in politics, and later in life was keenly interested in one issue in particular – women’s reproductive freedom. Instead of flowers, please consider making a donation to Planned Parenthood Action Fund or to your chosen charity.