Ruby Leona Whitaker

Ruby was born in Amagon, AR on February 15, 1925. She was the youngest of ten children born to Calvin and Ina (Waner) Moore. Ruby resided in the Choctaw/Harrah area for most of her 100 years, 9 months, and 7 days.
At the young age of 11, Ruby moved to Harrah to live with her sister, Lottie Higdon. She graduated from Harrah High School in 1942. Ruby married The Love of her life, Perman Whitaker, on November 17, 1945.
Ruby and Perman "Decided to Follow Jesus" on May 21, 1951. They remained faithful in their commitment of their time, talents, and finances throughout the remainder of their lives. Ruby was a humble servant – selflessly giving of herself to her family, her church, and so many others.
Ruby was a devoted wife, a loving Mother, a doting Grandmother, and a special "GG" to her great grandchildren. She was an exceptional homemaker and cook. She was a hard-worker who believed in "carrying her own weight and paying her own way." She was fiercely independent and a wise steward of available resources. She balanced her role as the family matriarch with employment at the Choctaw Post Office and later at Dillards. She and Perman thoroughly enjoyed bowling together in several bowling leagues. They also loved dining out with church friends following Sunday services. In her latter years, Ruby loved to be outside raking and burning leaves as weather conditions permitted.
Ruby was an "overcomer" in so many facets of her life. She overcame the loneliness of being a young girl away from her parents. She overcame her battle with tuberculosis and the isolation/separation from her husband and small children. She overcame the mental/physical fatigue of being the caregiver during Perman's battle with Alzheimer's. She overcame the debilitating frustration of declining eyesight due to macular degeneration. In all these challenges, Ruby "kept fighting", kept loving, and kept faith in Her Lord.
Ruby is survived by her son John Robert/Bobby (Dana); daughter, Dona Whitaker; grandsons, John David (Tracy) and Robert Michael (Vicky); great-grandchildren, Meredith, Gracy, Davis, and Max. She is also survived by her brothers-in-law Dr. Charles McCall and James Whitaker along with a host of other family and friends. Ruby was preceded in death by: husbands – Perman Whitaker and Robert Bruce; daughter-in-law - Martha Whitaker; grandson – Mitchell Whitaker; her parents; her siblings (Bessie, John, Ray, Mid, Lottie, Calvin, Grace, Clarence, & Eva); sisters-in-Law, Nota McCall and Willie Jean Overland; brother-in-law – Darrell Overland.
Ruby will always be remembered as a godly and gracious lady. She received the Good News, lived a good life, set a good example, enjoyed good times with good friends, and left a good name. She dearly loved her family and was loved much in return. She blessed our lives while on this earth and now awaits us in a far better place.
Funeral service will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, November 26th at Choctaw Church of the Nazarene. Viewing will be from 12-8 p.m. on Tuesday, November 25th at the Barnes-Friederich & Pope Funeral Home in Midwest City. Family members will be present for visitation from 5-7 p.m. There will be no viewing following the funeral service. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any donations be made to the Go Mitch Go Foundation (https://gomitchgo.com) Interment will be at Harrah Memory Lane Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are provided by Barnes-Friederich & Pope (https://www.bfpfuneralhome.com)