Ruth L. Bancroft

Middletown - Ruth L. Bancroft, a life-long resident of the area, died Monday, November 5, 2007 at The Valley View Center for Nursing Care and Rehabilitation in Goshen, N.Y., after a long period of failing health. She was born on October 6, 1919 in Middletown, N.Y., the youngest daughter of Ada Taylor Kinney and William Jacob Kinney. Her five sisters, Phoebe, Grace, Elsie, Eleanor, and Dorothea all predeceased her. She grew up on the family dairy farm in Ridgebury, N.Y., and along with her sister Dorothea helped her mother manage the farm after the death of her father in 1936. In 1938 she married George E. Howell, who died in 1961. She married her second husband, Albert G. Bancroft, in 1965. Mr. Bancroft died in January 2003. She was an avid reader, with a special interest in American History. She had a great respect for learning, and was very proud that her mother had been a schoolteacher and that her parents were trustees of the Ridgebury public schools. She was a member and former deaconess of the First Congregational Church of Middletown. She was kind and generous to all. She is survived by a daughter, Jeanette Colgrove and her husband Keith; two sons, Alan Howell and his wife Virginia, Ronald Howell and his wife Barbara; and a stepdaughter, Elaine Bancroft Jones, as well as several grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. A private graveside ceremony for relatives and close friends is planned. The family wishes to thank the entire staff of The Valley for Nursing Care and Rehabilitation for their wonderful care provided to Ruth. Arrangements are under the direction of Cornelius, Dodd & Connell Funeral Home, Inc. For directions or to send a condolence, please visit www.connellfuneralhome.com 845-343-2142