Ruby A. Dodge, 91

Ruby A. Dodge, our beloved mother, “went home to heaven” at the age of 91 on March 5, 2016.

Ruby was born on Sept. 4, 1924, to Andrew and Hulda Johnson in Little Falls, Minnesota. She lived in Minnesota until the age of 14; the family then moved to Kalispell. She was the youngest of eight children.

As a young woman, Ruby graduated from Beauty College in Butte. Later she pursued her dream of being a nurse. While working at the Kalispell General Hospital, she met her future husband, Albert A. Dodge. They married on June 16, 1953, and started their family.

Mom retired in 1986 from St. Peter’s Hospital in Helena. Mom and Dad returned to their home on Flathead Lake, where they enjoyed boating, fishing, flower gardening and day trips. Ruby was involved in her church and enjoyed the company of her family and friends. She enjoyed sitting on the deck in the sunshine looking at her roses and the beauty of the lake. Mom loved to travel and spend the winters with her daughters and grandchildren, always returning to her home in the spring.

Ruby was preceded in death by her husband, parents and siblings.

She is survived by her daughters, Allene Karlson of Sturgis, South Dakota; Marilyn and Ron Garner of St. Ignatius; Theresa and David Miller of Billings; and Carolyn Carstens of Brighton, Colorado; 11 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

Now, as we remember the times we sat with Mom, looking at the moon and stars in the sky thinking about God’s creation and how one day we would be in heaven with Jesus, we are reminded of your favorite verse: “For God so loved the world He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

“Mother, you will always be loved and never forgotten.”

The memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on April 1 at the Lakeside Baptist Church, 39 Bens Lane, in Lakeside, with reception to follow. Interment will be at 3:30 p.m. at the Sunset Memorial Gardens, 7405 Mullan Road, in Missoula.