Ruth Mary Criswell

1918 - 2015

Born : St. Louis, Mo., Dec. 25, 1918
Died : Los Angeles, Ca., June 20, 2015

Ruth was born in St. Louis, Mo., to Alfred James (a typesetter) and Cora Fike (a school teacher). She had three sisters, Cora (Carol), Celeste and Janet, a half-brother, Hayward, and two half-sisters, Mildred and Grace. She lost her parents before she had graduated from high school, but finished high school in Waterloo, Illinois, while living with her beloved great aunt Carrie.

Ruth soon enrolled in nursing school, and after completing her training, enlisted as a 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and was stationed in Burma (1944-1945). In a U.S. Military outpost on the Burma Road, Ruth met the love of her life, Capt. Wallace L. Criswell, a U.S. Army Air Corps pilot. Both were awarded medals for courage and bravery for their service to their country in World War II.

Ruth and Cris returned to San Diego, Cris's hometown, and were married Feb 12, 1946. Cris remained in the US Air Force, and was stationed in Denver. Daughters Leslie Ellen and Celeste Eileen were born in Denver. During this time, Cris served in the Korean War as a USAF pilot. The young family then moved to Arlington, Va., where daughters Lynn Arlene and Diane Allison were born. Next stop for the Criswell Family was Alamagordo, N.M., and in 1962 the family moved to L.A., and settled on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Ruth's daughters attended Silver Spur Elementary, Malaga Cove Jr. High, and Rolling Hills High (now Peninsula High).

Ruth returned to nursing in 1971 at San Pedro and Peninsula Hospital, then at Harbor UCLA Medical Center, and retired in 2002, at the age of 84. Cris, her husband of 69 years, passed away in Feb., 2014.

Ruth was always the strong, level-headed, competent and calm center of the family. She quietly took care of everyone, and taught her daughters the values of honesty, resiliency, loyalty and critical thinking. She supported her four grandchildren in their a college education and always took great joy in all of them. She was funny, a good listener (although sometimes quite opinionated!), an excellent seamstress, a competent and caring nurse, and made new friends all along the way. And she loved her dark chocolate ! Ruth was 96 when she passed, at home with family when she said goodbye. She will be greatly missed, but in truth she will never be really gone. And perhaps she and Cris are back together again...

Ruth is survived by her four daughters, Leslie Criswell (Palos Verdes), Celeste Randall Valley Glen, Lynn Criswell (Chico) Diane Criswell (San Pedro); her four grandchildren, Lauren Randall, Katherine Criswell Sales, Ryan Criswell Crawford and Evan Randall; her youngest sister, Janet Cape (Denver); her sister in law, Audrey Schiefer (San Diego); her niece, Donna Cape (Denver), and her nephews Art Schiefer (San Diego) and Gary Cape (Colorado).