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Earl Ruiter Obituary
He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Ruth (Veltman) Ruiter; two sons, Steven E. Ruiter, of Seattle, WA, and Jonathan M. Ruiter, of Centerville, VA; a daughter, Debora Wood, of Whitinsville; three brothers, Ralph, Daniel, and James Ruiter, and two sisters, MaryRuth VanderVelde, and SueAnn Bouwense, all of Michigan; and nine grandchildren. He was predeceased by a brother, James Ruiter.
Mr. Ruiter was born, October 8, 1939, in Grand Rapids, MI, a son of the late Arthur and Ruth (Rogers) Ruiter. He lived in Franklin, NH and Natick, MA before moving here in 2007. He attended Calvin College and earned a degree in civil engineering from MIT. He also earned a Masters degree from Northwestern University.
He was a transportation planner at Cambridge Systematics for 35 years prior to retiring in 2001.
Mr. Ruiter was a member of the Pleasant St. Christian Reformed Church in Whitinsville, and was a former member of Hope Church in Framingham where he served as an elder and deacon. He was actively involved in Habitat for Humanity, enjoyed travelling, and was a student of World War II history.
A funeral will be held at 10 AM, Monday, June 23, in the Pleasant St. Christian Reformed Church. Burial will follow in Pine Grove Cemetery. Calling Hours will be 3-5 and 7-9 PM, Sunday, June 22, in the Carr Funeral Home, 24 Hill St. Whitinsville.
Please omit flowers. Memorial donations may be made to: WCS Strings, c/o Whitinsville Christian School, 279 Linwood Ave. Whitinsville, MA, 01588.
(www.carrfuneralhome.com)
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for Earl Ruiter
Mary Rose
June 29, 2008
Dear Ruth, Deb, Steve, Jon and Families:
What an amazing celebration of Earl's incredible life. May the peace of God keep you and fill you now and always.
With Great Love,
Mel and Mary
Cindy Boucher
June 25, 2008
Dear Ruth and family,
Jerry and I wanted to send our heartfelt sympathies to you and your family.
Earl was a wonderful quiet man. and it was a pleasure to know him. He will be sadly missed.
Our prayers and thoughts
Cindy Boucher
Jerry Laflamme Sr
Matt and Marge Vanderhill
June 23, 2008
Dear Ruth, Deb, Steve, and Jon,
Please accept our heartfelt condolences on the recent death of Earl. We remember him with fondness and his unfailing gracious manner. We know he battled ill health for a number of years, but he was so young!
May the peace of Christ be yours in full measure,
Marge and Matt
Sue Bouwense
June 23, 2008
Dear Ruth and family,
As Doug and I motor east after today's celebration of Earl's life, I am rejoicing in the awesome legacy Earl left for all of us. My first memories of Earl have to do with his strength and quiet solidity as my biggest brother. I loved it when he was home. Now he is really home, and truly at peace after his struggle with cancer. He will be missed by so many. My love goes out to all of you.
Robert W. De Vries
June 23, 2008
Dear Ruth and family,
I join you in the sadness of your loss. It is hard to believe that Earl has left us; on the other hand, I don't need to remind you that his leaving is his promotion to "better things". I am thankful to have known Earl as a brother in the Lord, and I rejoice in his home coming. My prayers are with you all. God's grace is really sufficient.
In Christ,
Bob De Vries
Glen and Marcia Weisbrod
June 22, 2008
Dear Ruth, Deb and Family
Our sincere sympathies to you on your loss. Earl was an inspiration to many of us who worked (and carpooled) with him at CS, and he left us with many memories that will be cherished. Our hearts and wishes go out to you at this difficult time.
Pete and Audrey Johnson
June 22, 2008
Dear Ruth, Deb, Steve and Jon,
We have such great memories of the annual trips to visit us in Puerto Rico, as well as the baby sitting assignments when the children were oh so small.
Darlene Cote
June 21, 2008
Ruth, John and I would like to send our condolences to you and your family. I am sorry I never got to know Earl better. I found him to be such a generous and intelligent person. We will miss him at San Bartolo.
Suzie Carter
June 21, 2008
Dear Aunt Ruth and Family,
Please know we are there with you in our hearts. Earl was a wonderful uncle and we enjoyed the times that you came to Houston to visit.
Mel & Mildred Piper
June 21, 2008
Hi Ruth & family,
Earl was a wonderful friend to all.
When he visited church services at Congregational Christian Church here in Franklin, NH we enjoyed his unique smile and warm friendship.
Thanks for sharing him with us.
Gerben DeJong
June 20, 2008
Ruth, Deb, Steve, & Jon:
I will always remember Earl as a thoughtful and unassuming individual who never put himself ahead of others. His mild-mannered style masked a gifted intellect. He had a wry smile.
I have many memories of Earl but I will never forget bumping into Earl at Logan Airport one Easter morning and then sharing a flight to San Francisco on a DC-10. We had an unplanned in-flight lunch together somewhere over Iowa while our spouses (Ruth and Jan) were sharing an Easter dinner in Natick (planned). He shared a list of jokes with me, one of which I still tell 25 or more years later—but not in public.
Betsy McNamara
June 20, 2008
Earl (or Mr. Ruiter as I knew him) was a great guy - such a good person, great sense of humor - such a loss. Ruth, Deb, Steve, Jon and all the family: I am so sorry for the loss of your husband, dad and grandfather.
My thoughts and prayers are with you all.
Allen & Sharon VanPutten
June 19, 2008
Our hearts go out to you at this time and in the days ahead.
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