Ruby Zimmerman, 81

Ruby Zimmerman, 81, “went to be with our Lord” on Nov. 5, 2014. 

She was born at home on April 21, 1933, in Pierce, Colo. Ruby was a diminutive woman with a giant personality. She had a true zest for life. To her, nothing was impossible. 

Ruby was a people person who loved to garden, play online games and FaceTime with her children. She enjoyed playing bingo, board games and cards. She was an entrepreneur many times over and a woodcrafter with many other talents and ideas. 

In her younger years she was a trophy-winning bowler. She also worked for Learjet and McDonnell Douglas in Southern California. 

She loved to travel and made several trips to Florida and to Disney World. One thing on her “bucket-list” was to travel to Europe. She had a wonderful, month-long European vacation with her daughter Julie this past spring, and another was a trip to the Grand Canyon with her beloved husband Glen, just last month, which included visiting old friends and family.

She was preceded in death by her brothers, Larry, George and Gilbert Rendon and sisters, Mary Romero and Priscilla Warden, and three sons, Gary Stephenson, Richard Graeber and Mitchell Graeber. 

She was the mother of eight children and is survived by her husband of 42 years, Glen Zimmerman; two sons, Bob Stephenson, Brian and Sara Zimmerman, three daughters; Julie and Dick Hirschi, Jessica and Vincent Flamm, and Brenda and Slade Iverson; and daughter-in-law, Rita Graeber. She was a grandmother to 25 grandchildren, Tonya, Krista and Cody Stephenson, Mark, Reilly and Jena Stephenson, Chris, Curtis, Sharonna and Shanna Hermance-Graeber, Brandon, Don, Ted, Eric and Chandra Maxwell-Hirschi, Ashlee and Erin Flamm, Rebecca, Daniel, Chris and Brianna Heser-Iverson, and Christopher and Niklas Zimmerman; many great-, great-great-, and great-great-great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews, including Donna and Doug Stigerwald, Dennis Guy, Debra and David Bond, Robert Warden, and Kim and Jeff Sukut; and many, many longtime, dear friends. She will be greatly missed.  

Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, at Kalispell Foursquare Church, 2794 U.S. 93, Kalispell, with a graveside service and reception to follow.