Ruth Brown Garrett, 89, of Little Rock (formerly of Benton) passed away September 24, 2020 with her sons holding her hands. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Garrett, her brothers Arthur Brown and Malcolm Brown, and her sister Velma (Brown) Randolph. She is survived by two sons, Steve Garrett (Susan) of Little Rock, Arkansas and Reggie Garrett (Glynn) of Denton, Texas as well as grandsons Cody Garrett and Logan Garrett, granddaughter Olivia Garrett, and great grandson Sage Garrett.
Ruth was born to Guy and Maggie (Bowen) Brown March 12, 1931 in Nevada County, Arkansas. Along with her future husband, Charles, and many lifelong friends she attended the small one room school in Cale, Arkansas until moving near the end of high school to Prescott where she graduated. She loved playing on the schools’ basketball teams where her 5 ft 10 in height benefited her.
Maggie, Ruth’s mother, had been pressed into service as her family’s cook at age eleven. While the rest of her family worked the fields, young Maggie was left at home to cook for the large family every day. Fearing a similar fate for Ruth, Maggie never taught Ruth how to cook or manage a kitchen. Everything Ruth learned about cooking she learned in home economics classes and from her joy of cooking. She spent many happy hours reading recipes in cookbooks and magazines, adapting them, and serving them to guests. Ruth was never happier than when planning a meal, setting her table for the season of the year, and envisioning the dishes her friends would enjoy. For years in Benton she delighted in hosting friends and guests from her Northside Church of Christ family, taking special care to invite those who had been widowed.
Ruth graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing in 1954 and began her career as a registered nurse. She was an accomplished caregiver and administrator in the operating room, in private practice, and as Director of Nursing at nursing homes. Her devotion to her profession and to her patients demanded that she resign from one such position when she felt that patients’ interests were taking a back seat to those of accountants.
Ruth’s most significant contribution as a nurse was her long tenure at the Benton Services Center, now the Arkansas Services Center, where she trained many nurses at the beginning of their careers. She was renowned for her attention to detail, and many of her nurses can tell stories about being reminded of the need to keep uniforms pressed and white shoes white. As nursing scrubs became common Ruth adapted with the times and often said that nurses had a right to be comfortable while working. While fulfilling her responsibilities at the Benton Services Center Ruth obtained a B.S. degree from St. Francis University in Chicago, an accomplishment of which she was justifiably proud.
Throughout her nursing career, Ruth managed the household for the family. Charlie traveled for work the majority of each week for decades, and she kept things running smoothly, which entailed not only cooking and cleaning, but also caring for the dogs, horses, and cattle on the small farm, keeping the stove full of wood in winter, and taking the boys to sports practices and games and to church three times each week. She always kept an immaculate house and trained her boys to do the same. Beds were made every day, with "hospital corners" ensuring there were no wrinkles. Each Saturday morning her boys were required to change their linens, dust their rooms, and vacuum their floors before being allowed to venture out with friends. (The boys’ current day spouses dispute this account.)
Ruth helped create another lasting legacy when in the early 1970s she and Charlie along with dear friends Nick and Claudia Nichols and Charles and Mary Jackson launched a summer camp for youth through their Northside Church of Christ community. What began with a few pitched tents and six adults grew larger and more successful each year. The summer camps became a focal point for the church’s youth program that continued to grow long after the original six friends retired from managing it. Thanks to many others’ work and a generous donation the camp is now Corin Read Christian Camp in Sardis, Arkansas. Sessions extend for several weeks each summer to accommodate the number of young attendees, and the facilities are used throughout the year for meetings and retreats.
Ruth was well known for her love of Razorback football and basketball. Less well known is the fact that as with many things in her life she set out to become a fan. As a mother to two boys she knew her home would be filled with rocks and toads and balls and gloves rather than bows and lace. She decided that she would become a sports fan and to learn the intricacies of the games so that she would be able to participate in her boys’ lives. Just as had happened with cooking earlier, what might have begun with a purpose became a passion. As an empty nester, she and Charlie often attended Razorback football games in Little Rock, and she frequently dressed in Razorback red for televised games. Her approach to the Razorbacks was a core of hope spread with a thin layer of fatalism. "There’s no way we win this game Saturday, but we might!"
Ruth doted on her grandsons, maintaining a relationship with Cody and Logan even as Reggie’s career found them moving from Texas to Oregon to Colorado and back to Texas. The laughter and energy of young boys came to her again with the birth of her great grandson Sage in 2014. Her hopes of bows and lace were fulfilled when her granddaughter Olivia was born to Steve and Susan in 2004. She enjoyed decorating her guest room for Olivia, hosting her for sleepovers, and learning to bake cookies together. Olivia shares Ruth’s love of baking, and just before her passing her beloved Kitchen Aid stand mixer became Olivia’s.
Ruth was born to Guy and Maggie (Bowen) Brown March 12, 1931 in Nevada County, Arkansas. Along with her future husband, Charles, and many lifelong friends she attended the small one room school in Cale, Arkansas until moving near the end of high school to Prescott where she graduated. She loved playing on the schools’ basketball teams where her 5 ft 10 in height benefited her.
Maggie, Ruth’s mother, had been pressed into service as her family’s cook at age eleven. While the rest of her family worked the fields, young Maggie was left at home to cook for the large family every day. Fearing a similar fate for Ruth, Maggie never taught Ruth how to cook or manage a kitchen. Everything Ruth learned about cooking she learned in home economics classes and from her joy of cooking. She spent many happy hours reading recipes in cookbooks and magazines, adapting them, and serving them to guests. Ruth was never happier than when planning a meal, setting her table for the season of the year, and envisioning the dishes her friends would enjoy. For years in Benton she delighted in hosting friends and guests from her Northside Church of Christ family, taking special care to invite those who had been widowed.
Ruth graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing in 1954 and began her career as a registered nurse. She was an accomplished caregiver and administrator in the operating room, in private practice, and as Director of Nursing at nursing homes. Her devotion to her profession and to her patients demanded that she resign from one such position when she felt that patients’ interests were taking a back seat to those of accountants.
Ruth’s most significant contribution as a nurse was her long tenure at the Benton Services Center, now the Arkansas Services Center, where she trained many nurses at the beginning of their careers. She was renowned for her attention to detail, and many of her nurses can tell stories about being reminded of the need to keep uniforms pressed and white shoes white. As nursing scrubs became common Ruth adapted with the times and often said that nurses had a right to be comfortable while working. While fulfilling her responsibilities at the Benton Services Center Ruth obtained a B.S. degree from St. Francis University in Chicago, an accomplishment of which she was justifiably proud.
Throughout her nursing career, Ruth managed the household for the family. Charlie traveled for work the majority of each week for decades, and she kept things running smoothly, which entailed not only cooking and cleaning, but also caring for the dogs, horses, and cattle on the small farm, keeping the stove full of wood in winter, and taking the boys to sports practices and games and to church three times each week. She always kept an immaculate house and trained her boys to do the same. Beds were made every day, with "hospital corners" ensuring there were no wrinkles. Each Saturday morning her boys were required to change their linens, dust their rooms, and vacuum their floors before being allowed to venture out with friends. (The boys’ current day spouses dispute this account.)
Ruth helped create another lasting legacy when in the early 1970s she and Charlie along with dear friends Nick and Claudia Nichols and Charles and Mary Jackson launched a summer camp for youth through their Northside Church of Christ community. What began with a few pitched tents and six adults grew larger and more successful each year. The summer camps became a focal point for the church’s youth program that continued to grow long after the original six friends retired from managing it. Thanks to many others’ work and a generous donation the camp is now Corin Read Christian Camp in Sardis, Arkansas. Sessions extend for several weeks each summer to accommodate the number of young attendees, and the facilities are used throughout the year for meetings and retreats.
Ruth was well known for her love of Razorback football and basketball. Less well known is the fact that as with many things in her life she set out to become a fan. As a mother to two boys she knew her home would be filled with rocks and toads and balls and gloves rather than bows and lace. She decided that she would become a sports fan and to learn the intricacies of the games so that she would be able to participate in her boys’ lives. Just as had happened with cooking earlier, what might have begun with a purpose became a passion. As an empty nester, she and Charlie often attended Razorback football games in Little Rock, and she frequently dressed in Razorback red for televised games. Her approach to the Razorbacks was a core of hope spread with a thin layer of fatalism. "There’s no way we win this game Saturday, but we might!"
Ruth doted on her grandsons, maintaining a relationship with Cody and Logan even as Reggie’s career found them moving from Texas to Oregon to Colorado and back to Texas. The laughter and energy of young boys came to her again with the birth of her great grandson Sage in 2014. Her hopes of bows and lace were fulfilled when her granddaughter Olivia was born to Steve and Susan in 2004. She enjoyed decorating her guest room for Olivia, hosting her for sleepovers, and learning to bake cookies together. Olivia shares Ruth’s love of baking, and just before her passing her beloved Kitchen Aid stand mixer became Olivia’s.
Ruth Brown Garrett, 89, of Little Rock (formerly of Benton) passed away September 24, 2020 with her sons holding her hands. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Garrett, her brothers Arthur Brown and Malcolm Brown, and her sister Velma (Brown) Randolph. She is survived by two sons, Steve Garrett (Susan) of Little Rock, Arkansas and Reggie Garrett (Glynn) of Denton, Texas as well as grandsons Cody Garrett and Logan Garrett, granddaughter Olivia Garrett, and great grandson Sage Garrett.
Ruth was born to Guy and Maggie (Bowen) Brown March 12, 1931 in Nevada County, Arkansas. Along with her future husband, Charles, and many lifelong friends she attended the small one room school in Cale, Arkansas until moving near the end of high school to Prescott where she graduated. She loved playing on the schools’ basketball teams where her 5 ft 10 in height benefited her.
Maggie, Ruth’s mother, had been pressed into service as her family’s cook at age eleven. While the rest of her family worked the fields, young Maggie was left at home to cook for the large family every day. Fearing a similar fate for Ruth, Maggie never taught Ruth how to cook or manage a kitchen. Everything Ruth learned about cooking she learned in home economics classes and from her joy of cooking. She spent many happy hours reading recipes in cookbooks and magazines, adapting them, and serving them to guests. Ruth was never happier than when planning a meal, setting her table for the season of the year, and envisioning the dishes her friends would enjoy. For years in Benton she delighted in hosting friends and guests from her Northside Church of Christ family, taking special care to invite those who had been widowed.
Ruth graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing in 1954 and began her career as a registered nurse. She was an accomplished caregiver and administrator in the operating room, in private practice, and as Director of Nursing at nursing homes. Her devotion to her profession and to her patients demanded that she resign from one such position when she felt that patients’ interests were taking a back seat to those of accountants.
Ruth’s most significant contribution as a nurse was her long tenure at the Benton Services Center, now the Arkansas Services Center, where she trained many nurses at the beginning of their careers. She was renowned for her attention to detail, and many of her nurses can tell stories about being reminded of the need to keep uniforms pressed and white shoes white. As nursing scrubs became common Ruth adapted with the times and often said that nurses had a right to be comfortable while working. While fulfilling her responsibilities at the Benton Services Center Ruth obtained a B.S. degree from St. Francis University in Chicago, an accomplishment of which she was justifiably proud.
Throughout her nursing career, Ruth managed the household for the family. Charlie traveled for work the majority of each week for decades, and she kept things running smoothly, which entailed not only cooking and cleaning, but also caring for the dogs, horses, and cattle on the small farm, keeping the stove full of wood in winter, and taking the boys to sports practices and games and to church three times each week. She always kept an immaculate house and trained her boys to do the same. Beds were made every day, with "hospital corners" ensuring there were no wrinkles. Each Saturday morning her boys were required to change their linens, dust their rooms, and vacuum their floors before being allowed to venture out with friends. (The boys’ current day spouses dispute this account.)
Ruth helped create another lasting legacy when in the early 1970s she and Charlie along with dear friends Nick and Claudia Nichols and Charles and Mary Jackson launched a summer camp for youth through their Northside Church of Christ community. What began with a few pitched tents and six adults grew larger and more successful each year. The summer camps became a focal point for the church’s youth program that continued to grow long after the original six friends retired from managing it. Thanks to many others’ work and a generous donation the camp is now Corin Read Christian Camp in Sardis, Arkansas. Sessions extend for several weeks each summer to accommodate the number of young attendees, and the facilities are used throughout the year for meetings and retreats.
Ruth was well known for her love of Razorback football and basketball. Less well known is the fact that as with many things in her life she set out to become a fan. As a mother to two boys she knew her home would be filled with rocks and toads and balls and gloves rather than bows and lace. She decided that she would become a sports fan and to learn the intricacies of the games so that she would be able to participate in her boys’ lives. Just as had happened with cooking earlier, what might have begun with a purpose became a passion. As an empty nester, she and Charlie often attended Razorback football games in Little Rock, and she frequently dressed in Razorback red for televised games. Her approach to the Razorbacks was a core of hope spread with a thin layer of fatalism. "There’s no way we win this game Saturday, but we might!"
Ruth doted on her grandsons, maintaining a relationship with Cody and Logan even as Reggie’s career found them moving from Texas to Oregon to Colorado and back to Texas. The laughter and energy of young boys came to her again with the birth of her great grandson Sage in 2014. Her hopes of bows and lace were fulfilled when her granddaughter Olivia was born to Steve and Susan in 2004. She enjoyed decorating her guest room for Olivia, hosting her for sleepovers, and learning to bake cookies together. Olivia shares Ruth’s love of baking, and just before her passing her beloved Kitchen Aid stand mixer became Olivia’s.
Ruth was born to Guy and Maggie (Bowen) Brown March 12, 1931 in Nevada County, Arkansas. Along with her future husband, Charles, and many lifelong friends she attended the small one room school in Cale, Arkansas until moving near the end of high school to Prescott where she graduated. She loved playing on the schools’ basketball teams where her 5 ft 10 in height benefited her.
Maggie, Ruth’s mother, had been pressed into service as her family’s cook at age eleven. While the rest of her family worked the fields, young Maggie was left at home to cook for the large family every day. Fearing a similar fate for Ruth, Maggie never taught Ruth how to cook or manage a kitchen. Everything Ruth learned about cooking she learned in home economics classes and from her joy of cooking. She spent many happy hours reading recipes in cookbooks and magazines, adapting them, and serving them to guests. Ruth was never happier than when planning a meal, setting her table for the season of the year, and envisioning the dishes her friends would enjoy. For years in Benton she delighted in hosting friends and guests from her Northside Church of Christ family, taking special care to invite those who had been widowed.
Ruth graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing in 1954 and began her career as a registered nurse. She was an accomplished caregiver and administrator in the operating room, in private practice, and as Director of Nursing at nursing homes. Her devotion to her profession and to her patients demanded that she resign from one such position when she felt that patients’ interests were taking a back seat to those of accountants.
Ruth’s most significant contribution as a nurse was her long tenure at the Benton Services Center, now the Arkansas Services Center, where she trained many nurses at the beginning of their careers. She was renowned for her attention to detail, and many of her nurses can tell stories about being reminded of the need to keep uniforms pressed and white shoes white. As nursing scrubs became common Ruth adapted with the times and often said that nurses had a right to be comfortable while working. While fulfilling her responsibilities at the Benton Services Center Ruth obtained a B.S. degree from St. Francis University in Chicago, an accomplishment of which she was justifiably proud.
Throughout her nursing career, Ruth managed the household for the family. Charlie traveled for work the majority of each week for decades, and she kept things running smoothly, which entailed not only cooking and cleaning, but also caring for the dogs, horses, and cattle on the small farm, keeping the stove full of wood in winter, and taking the boys to sports practices and games and to church three times each week. She always kept an immaculate house and trained her boys to do the same. Beds were made every day, with "hospital corners" ensuring there were no wrinkles. Each Saturday morning her boys were required to change their linens, dust their rooms, and vacuum their floors before being allowed to venture out with friends. (The boys’ current day spouses dispute this account.)
Ruth helped create another lasting legacy when in the early 1970s she and Charlie along with dear friends Nick and Claudia Nichols and Charles and Mary Jackson launched a summer camp for youth through their Northside Church of Christ community. What began with a few pitched tents and six adults grew larger and more successful each year. The summer camps became a focal point for the church’s youth program that continued to grow long after the original six friends retired from managing it. Thanks to many others’ work and a generous donation the camp is now Corin Read Christian Camp in Sardis, Arkansas. Sessions extend for several weeks each summer to accommodate the number of young attendees, and the facilities are used throughout the year for meetings and retreats.
Ruth was well known for her love of Razorback football and basketball. Less well known is the fact that as with many things in her life she set out to become a fan. As a mother to two boys she knew her home would be filled with rocks and toads and balls and gloves rather than bows and lace. She decided that she would become a sports fan and to learn the intricacies of the games so that she would be able to participate in her boys’ lives. Just as had happened with cooking earlier, what might have begun with a purpose became a passion. As an empty nester, she and Charlie often attended Razorback football games in Little Rock, and she frequently dressed in Razorback red for televised games. Her approach to the Razorbacks was a core of hope spread with a thin layer of fatalism. "There’s no way we win this game Saturday, but we might!"
Ruth doted on her grandsons, maintaining a relationship with Cody and Logan even as Reggie’s career found them moving from Texas to Oregon to Colorado and back to Texas. The laughter and energy of young boys came to her again with the birth of her great grandson Sage in 2014. Her hopes of bows and lace were fulfilled when her granddaughter Olivia was born to Steve and Susan in 2004. She enjoyed decorating her guest room for Olivia, hosting her for sleepovers, and learning to bake cookies together. Olivia shares Ruth’s love of baking, and just before her passing her beloved Kitchen Aid stand mixer became Olivia’s.
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