Virginia Ruth (Miller) Geer, or Ruth as she was often called, of 111 Valley Court, passed on to meet her maker Monday, April 25, 2011 at 7:43 p.m. She was hospitalized with aspiration pneumonia on April 10th, but had been home since the 18th. Her last day was one of peaceful resting.
She was born in St. George, Tucker County, on May 14, 1919, and was the ninth of ten children born unto George Camden and Nora Beatrice (Adams) Miller. She was a descendent of some of the earliest settlers of that county, including John Minear.
Ruth graduated from Parsons High School on May 19, 1939, and followed in the footsteps of her brothers by attending West Virginia University. While at school, she met John Franklin Geer of Newell, Hancock County and the two were married on April 22, 1943, at the Wesley Methodist Church on High Street in Morgantown.
Upon graduating from WVU with a bachelor’s degree in Home Economics on May 31, 1943, Ruth moved to Pittsburgh to join her husband, a junior at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Dentistry.
Ruth and John moved to Newell in February 1946. They resided there until John entered active duty as a regular army officer in October 1949. For the next 19 years, Ruth was an army wife on the move raising three children. The family resided in San Francisco, California; Guam; Osaka, Japan; Fort Knox, Kentucky; San Antonio, Texas; Redstone Arsenal, Alabama; Chinon, France; Columbus, Ohio; and finally Fort Knox, Kentucky.
Upon John’s retirement from the army in 1968, Ruth and John moved from Fort Knox to Elkins. They were drawn here by an undergraduate classmate from WVU, Dr. Thomas Cox.
Ruth was a religious woman who lived her life in accordance with the gospel. She and her husband were active with the Gideon’s and were members of the United Methodist Church of Elkins, the First Assembly of God and most recently, since 1990, the Elkins Church of God.
Ruth was a kind hearted soul and a good natured person. As the years wore on, she never complained and was quick to thank anyone for any little thing done for her, especially her daughter/caretaker. She loved to laugh and her personality stayed in tack until the very end.
In addition to her parents and all nine siblings, Ruth was predeceased by her husband, John Franklin Geer, on December 5, 1995; a granddaughter, Katie Luise Geer, on September 29, 1982; and her son, Katie’s father, John Miller Geer, on October 17, 2010. Ruth is survived by her daughter and caretaker since 2005, Linda Lee Harris and husband Donnie of Elkins; son Robert Donald Geer and wife Maria of Charlotte, NC; and daughter-in-law, Jan Geer of Hamilton, MT. She is survived by five grandchildren: Donalyn Harris of Rosemont, WV; Bryon Geer of Goldsboro, NC; J. J. Harris of Pittsburgh, PA; Andy Geer of Winston-salem, NC; and Matthew Geer of Charlotte, NC. She is survived by eight great-grandchildren: Bridon and Brialyn Strahin of Rosemont, WV; Michael and Jack Geer of Goldsboro, NC; and Hailey, Katie Rose, Rachael and Noah Geer of Winston-salem, NC.
Friends may call from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at the Tomblyn Funeral Home in Elkins. A funeral service will be held at 11:00 AM Thursday, April 28th from the funeral home chapel with Pastor Jamie Estep officiating. Interment will follow in the American Legion’s Little Arlington Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Ruth’s memory to the Elkins Church of God, 1402 Taylor Avenue, Elkins, WV 26241. The Tomblyn Funeral Home of Elkins is in charge of the arrangements for Virginia Ruth (Miller) Geer.
