Ruth Victoria Spencer

Ruth Victoria Eunice Spencer

Aug 15, 1945 - November 4, 2025

Ruth Spencer passed away on November 4, 2025 at 11pm at Surrey Memorial Hospital. She was surrounded by her immediate family, and she passed swiftly and with minimal pain after two days in hospital from an aortic dissection. We deeply miss her undeniable presence but take great solace in the fact that there was time to gather, share love and memories, comfort her and say goodbye in her last days with us. She had just turned 80 in August 2025, and for the past few years had endured many chronic health conditions which took a toll. We are grateful she is now free of pain. 

Ruth leaves behind her husband Gerald and two children - her daughter Colby (Tony), her son Stefan (Katie) and her grandchildren Holden (12), Flynn (11), and Ellie (10). 

Born in Roddickton, Newfoundland in 1945, Ruth was one of five siblings. Her middle names Victoria and Eunice were given to reflect V-J Day, officially ending World War II. Her family moved west in the early 50’s for her father to follow work as a boilermaker. After a short stint in Sarnia, Ontario they ended up in BC where they all remained. 

Ruth moved out on her own and started working as soon as she could, and met many good friends she still spoke to well into her late 70’s. Through a mutual friend she met Gerald, and well you know how these things go - Colby arrived at Royal Columbian Hospital in 1976. They settled in New Westminster for many years, and Stefan was born in 1979. Ruth and Gerald moved the family to Surrey in 1981, where they rented and then purchased their home in which they lived right up until today. They didn’t ‘officially’ tie the knot until 1986, where they celebrated with a small ceremony at Gerald’s brother’s home in Winnipeg, MB in 1986, where both their children would attend as well! 

Once the kids were in school, Ruth also went back to school - night school that is. She graduated with her Court Reporting diploma, and soon got to work - first in courthouses across BC, covering murder trials and automobile accidents and everything in between. She eventually joined a court reporting firm and became a partner at New West Reporting, where she worked until she retired in 2016. She got to know all of the lawyers who crossed her path over the span of her career, sharing stories of their lives, and many of them becoming good friends as well. 

Ruth was also quite a creative soul and a hippie at heart. She loved Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, playing records around the house on weekends and singing her heart out. She gardened for many years with Dad in the backyard. She was also a prolific and talented crafter - she quilted, sewed and even embroidered Gerald’s jean jackets with daisies and mushrooms in the late 70’s. She handmade corn husk dolls and dried flower arrangements in the 80’s. She took up watercolour painting in the 90’s, and most recently she very much enjoyed creating pebble and sea glass art, a few of us lucky ones have hanging in our homes. She had a soft spot for the Salvation Army, which she always donated to in gratitude for the times they helped her own family growing up. Ruth loved animals, and donated to various charities in kind. She devotedly fed the birds all winter on her front deck, marvelling at any newcomers and making sure that feeder was full. She loved her two dogs, Higgins and Portia, and still had their ashes on her bookshelf. 

Speaking of books, Ruth was a voracious reader - and true crime was her absolute favourite. She spent a couple stays in 2025 in hospital, each time providing the grateful nurses with a list of books to check out. 

With some encouragement to see the world, Ruth travelled a lot in her 60’s with Dad - Europe, the Panama Canal, the Caribbean, Iceland, Mexico, the USA, and even Australia to visit Colby when she lived there with Tony in 2011. She was a nervous flier but a hearty traveller once the plane wheels hit the tarmac. 

Ruth didn’t mince words nor suffer fools. You always knew where she stood with her - but she was as tough as she was soft and kind. She mothered many, and our door was always open for anyone who needed a soft space to land - and many did. Becoming a grandmother was one of her greatest joys, and the family pool got a new generation of little swimmers, where we would all spend endless summer days and evenings hanging out in Mom and Dad’s backyard. 

Ruth is also survived by her sisters Verna and Vera, and her brother Robert, plus many nieces and nephews. She is predeceased by her mother Julia, her father Ford, and her sister Judy. 

A celebration of life will be held for Ruth in the spring, when the flowers are blooming and her beloved birds are chirping.

The family also thanks all the caregivers and doctors who made her final days comfortable, with dignity and grace.