Ruth Lenora Bodine was born on her family's donation land claim in Albany, Oregon on October 22nd, 1889. She was a 2nd generation Oregonian, her grandfather having relocated from Ohio to Indiana and then to Oregon Territory in 1852 and her grandmother having relocated from Pennsylvania to Indiana and then to Oregon Territory in 1845. They had met and married in the Oregon Territory in 1857, just 2 years prior to statehood. Ruth's father, William Albert Bodine (1858-1919) had been the 1st born child of their union and became a well known horticulturalist in the Linn County area. Her mother was Sarah Adeline "Addie" Richardson (1865-1943); Ruth was the 2nd of six children and she grew up on her parents farm, attending school and helping with chores. In 1910, she lived with her paternal uncle, Daniel Harvey Bodine (1865-1944), on his farm in Price, to the south of Albany, keeping house and doing chores until he married Lola Reed Jordan in 1916. Her father died in 1919 and she returned home to live with her widowed mother, maternal grandfather and three sisters; she now listed her occupation as a Nurse at the age of 29. Ruth married Leander Kenneth Burkhart (1882-1963) on Feb 16, 1927. It was the 1st marriage for both of them. Leander was a farmer, living on donation land that he'd inherited through his father, Hezekiah Davidson Burkhart (1853-1924). The couple had no children but theirs was a joyous union and they remained together until Ruth died at the age of 69 on December 7th, 1958. Rheumatic Fever as a child had weakened her heart and she was also a diabetic. Leander and Ruth were living in town at 2640 Santiam Road, Albany, Oregon, when she died about six weeks after her 69th birthday. They had been married for 31 years. Her loving husband laid her to rest at Riverside Cemetery, the same Albany cemetery where her parents were interred. Her husband passed away five years later and was buried next to his beloved wife. They share a headstone. May they Rest in Eternal Peace in Paradise.