Ruby Johnson Stewart

Ruby Johnson Stewart

Ruby Johnson Stewart, 86, of Vancouver, Washington, and a long-time resident of Pocatello, passed away Sunday, July 29, 2007 at Legacy Salmon Creek Hospital in Vancouver, WA following emergency surgery.

Ruby was born November 13, 1920 at Downey, Bannock County, Idaho in the Cambridge area. She was the sixth of seven children born to Mark Lavell Johnson and Ida Hyde. At the age of two years and five months (after her mother's death on Nov. 13, 1922), she went to Trenton, Cache County, Utah to be raised by an aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. Francis I. Mortensen.

She was graduated with honors from North Cache High School, Richmond, Utah, in May 1937, and later attended night school at LDS Business College in Salt Lake City. She attended Utah State University (then Utah State Agricultural College) for one semester, and later finished two years at the University of Utah. She filled a 20-month LDS mission in Toronto, Canada from 1944-1946. For two and a half years she was secretary to Belle S. Spafford of the LDS General Relief Society Board in Salt Lake City.

In July 1947, Ruby moved to Pocatello to care for her father. She married Pharis Grant Stewart on May 21, 1948 in the Logan LDS Temple, and for 53 years Pocatello was her home.

Ruby worked as a secretary for Pocatello School District 25, and Idaho State University for a total of ten years. Her interests were creative writing, music, genealogy, and teaching. She taught in all the auxiliaries of the LDS church, served as a Primary organist, ward choir and Relief Society chorus member, and as editor-typist of a church news bulletin for most of thirty years. She was a member of Lambda Delta Sigma, Gem State Writer Guild, and of Rainbow Camp, Daughters of Utah Pioneers. As secretary to Charles E. Vance she helped set up the first Pocatello office of the Southeast Idaho Child Development Center in 1970. Ruby was a kind, thoughtful, generous person who took great pleasure in spending time with her family and friends.

Survivors include two daughters, Mary Anne (Ed) Miller, Bremerton, Washington, Ruth Marie (Kirk) Brown, Vancouver, Washington; a son, John G. Stewart, Pocatello; one brother, Hubert (Jean) Johnson, Bloomington, Minnesota; one sister, Mary Mitchell, Chubbuck; six grandsons, Alan (Staci) Bosh, Pocatello, Brady Bosh, Pocatello, John G. Stewart, Kuna, Idaho, Christopher, Aaron, and Kyler Brown, Vancouver, Washington; two granddaughters, Shannon (Gary) Horrocks, Meridian, Idaho, Rachel Brown, Vancouver, WA; and six great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by an infant son, Mark "J" Johnson, her husband, Pharis, three brothers, and two sisters.

The family will receive friends at Manning-Wheatley Funeral Chapel, 510 North 12th Ave., on Friday, August 3 from 7-9pm. On Saturday, August 4, friends may visit from 10 am until 10:45 am, and the funeral will be at 11 am Saturday at Manning-Wheatley Funeral Chapel. Visit www.manningwheatleyfuneralchapel.com for online condolences.