Ruth Prather Parks

BONNERS FERRY, ID - Ruth Parks, 94, passed away on Thursday, March 6, 2014 at Boundary Community Hospital and Nursing Home in Bonners Ferry, ID.

She was born on August 11, 1919 in Touchet, WA. She was the daughter of G. Blaine and Maude Scott Prather.

Ruth attended schools in Buena and Toppenish and graduated from Toppenish High School in 1937. She then attended Northwestern Business College in Spokane and graduated in 1938.

She married Duane Parks on September 6, 1940 in her home outside of Buena. They were married for 58 years.

In their first years of marriage they moved to California then back to Yakima where they owned a small neighborhood grocery store. Several years later they sold their store and moved to Klamath Falls, Oregon where Ruth worked as a cashier for Montgomery Wards. Four years later, they moved back to Washington and made their home in Toppenish until their retirement.

Ruth went to work for Del Monte in Toppenish where she worked in the Personnel office for many years. She later took a job with the Toppenish Hospital as the Credit Manager. Her last job was with Colonial Funeral Home and Ambulance. She dispatched ambulances, kept books and did general office work. She retired in June 1982.

Ruth loved gardening. She always had a variety of roses which were her favorite. She also loved to sew, quilt, knit, crochet, and work on crafts and ceramics. She always had a project she was working on.

She was a member of West Side Baptist Church of Yakima and a former member of Calvary Baptist Church in Toppenish where she was active in the church choir and also held the office of church treasurer for a time.

After retirement, Ruth and Duane started traveling and camping in their 5th wheel trailer. They spent their winters in the South and then came back to the Northwest for the summer months. For their 50th anniversary they went across the country and visited many sites all over the USA. They were on the road for about 5 years and then settled in Yakima.

She is survived by her 3 children: Sharon (Marvin) Lyon of Mesa, AZ, David (Jan) Parks of Black Hawk, SD and Cathy (Eric) Thaxton of Bonners Ferry, ID; a brother, Ross Prather of Arizona; 7 grandchildren, Brian Lyon of Oroville, WA, Lisa Feely of Murrieta, CA, CJ Parks of Hemet, CA, Jeffrey Thaxton of Sandpoint, ID, David Thaxton of Danville, VA, Stephen Thaxton and Casey Thaxton of Yakima; 12 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Duane Parks, her brother Don Prather and her sister Dorothy Naomi Bullard.

Our family would like to personally thank Bonnie Ferrell for all her love and friendship that she gave to Mom over the last few years. Mom loved her very much.

If you wish to make donations in Ruth’s memory, please make them to the Union Gospel Mission care of Keith & Keith Funeral Home, 902 W. Yakima Avenue, Yakima, WA 98902.

Visitation will be held Thursday, March 20, 2014 from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. at Keith & Keith Funeral Home. Burial will be at Elmwood Cemetery, Friday, March 21, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. with a Memorial Service to follow at 1:00 p.m. at West Side Church.

To celebrate the life of Ruth and share a memory, visit www.keithandkeith.com.