Gwendlyn Ruth Flickinger was born on November 12, 1933, in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada. She tied the knot with Lyle Smith on March 15, 1953. He passed away before her. Together, Ruth and Lyle raised four daughters: Christina Della Nebbia, Debra Weatherl who is married to Steve, Lori Smith who is married to Scott Beckman, and Lisa Sutton who is married to Brian. She also leaves behind 17 grandchildren along with many nieces and nephews. Ruth had three sisters: Shirley Caley and Linda Faust, both of whom have passed away; and Kathy who is married to Gary Myers from Waterloo, Iowa.
Five years after losing her first husband Lyle, she married Jim Ver Hoef in 1977. Jim also preceded her in death. Ruth and Jim loved exploring new places and traveled to every state in the U. S., as well as Canada, Mexico, and Italy. Ruth often said that she first fell in love with God, the Creator, which showed in her appreciation for nature through hiking, canoeing, skiing, and camping. She enjoyed sleeping in a tent or trailer just to spend time outdoors with the Lord. Frequently, her children and grandchildren would join her on trips to places like the Grand Canyon, the piney woods of East Texas, the mountains of Colorado or even just to the beach near her home in Portland, Texas among many other beautiful locations.
Music was another passion of hers; she sang in choirs at each Methodist Church she attended. She also performed solo at band concerts and weddings. To accompany songs during canoe trips in Canada or Volunteers in Mission trips (with the Methodist Church) or family gatherings at home’s living room she taught herself how to play guitar.
After losing Lyle her husband Ruth decided to pursue a career as a florist by going back to school. She worked alongside lifelong friends at a nursery located in Burlington, Iowa where she excelled at arranging flowers-even doing some arrangements for a few of her daughters’ weddings which ended up ruining her refrigerator!
Apart from working with Volunteers in Mission she took on various roles within the Methodist Church community. Additionally for 15 years she served as a counselor at an adventure camp called Canoe Canada where she’d spend weeks deep into Canadian Boundary Waters wilderness! Teaching Sunday School brought joy along with traveling adventures snow skiing camping reading visiting friends; however nothing made her happier than spending time with her children and grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life service took place on Saturday February 21st 2026 at First United Methodist Church located Bastrop Texas. Following this ceremony , Ruth will be interred privately at Fairview Cemetery Cedar Falls surrounded by family members.
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