Obituary of Ruth Gertrude Egnew

Ruth Gertrude Egnew 8/1/27 - 3/26/15 Surviving Relatives: Sister – Christa Carroll Sons – Lutz (Sonny) Timm, Richard Timm and David Timm Step Daughter – Donna Egnew, Lynn Schmidt Grandchildren – Cosette Mortensen, Tiffany Fuentes, Jake Timm, Robert Timm, Matthew Timm, JD Timm, Sean Timm, Jordan Timm, Spenser Timm, Dylan Timm, Deanna Adams, Robert Larios, Lisa Ares, Jennifer Johnson Great Grandchildren – Marissa Mortensen, Ricky Mortensen, Robert Pierce Fuentes, Zoe Fuentes, Sofia Fuentes, Aden Timm and Christina Johnson Ruth, a very loving mom and a very strong and special person, was born in Berlin, Germany on August 1, 1927. During the Second World War she was forced to be part of the Nazi Youth. This was very hard for her since her parents were anti-Nazi. There were times when the other students would ridicule and beat her because of her parent’s beliefs. At the end of the war, she met up with her parents and sister in Berlin. That is where she met Private Lester Timm who had come up through Italy. Although her parents were anti-Nazi they were not pro-American so she could no longer live with her family. She moved to their old house in the Soviet-controlled East Berlin. Lester was stationed back to Italy. When he found out that Ruth was expecting a child he went AWOL to join her in East Berlin. They had a little girl named Ingrid. After Ingrid was born, the US Army discovered Lester was in East Berlin and they had to notify the Soviet Army. Two MPs, along with multiple Soviet soldiers, surrounded the house with guns drawn. After going through everything in the house and determining that Lester and Ruth were not spies, the MPs took my dad and Ruth was left alone with Ingrid. She would steal from gardens at night and sell what ever items she could to buy food. At approximately 11 months old, Ingrid became sick and had to go to the hospital. One day the nurse told mom that Ingrid was doing a lot better. Since it was a sunny day, she recommended that Ruth bring her a jacket and take her outside for a walk. Ruth went home to get the baby buggy and clothes. When she got back to the hospital she found the curtains to Ingrid’s room were drawn shut. Ingrid had passed away. Ruth had to sell books and other items to purchase a small coffin. She put the coffin in the baby buggy to get it to the hospital on the train. That sad and difficult day shows us just one example of Ruth’s strength and determination. After finishing his tour, Lester ended up back in the US and Ruth joined him. They were formally married and she became a US Citizen. After marrying, they moved to Nebraska where Lester worked on his grandfather’s farm. Ruth told stories of becoming lost in a snow storm trying to walk to another farm house. Luckily, Lester was able to find her. Once Lester went back into the army, their life became traveling from one spot to another. My mom loved the changes. She enjoyed traveling and meeting new people. During her life, Ruth lived in Berlin Germany, Norfolk Nebraska, El Paso Texas, Chicago Illinois, Huntsville Alabama, Kaiserslautern Germany, Fort Knox Kentucky and finally stopping to spend the rest of her life in Seattle. During this time she had three children: Lutz (Sonny), Richard and David. In 1966, she and Lester divorced. She met Bill Egnew and after six months they were married. They were now a family of nine. She still loved traveling and seeing new sites. She and Bill made a couple of trips to Germany and multiple trips to Maui, Hawaii. Hawaii was her favorite. She would tell us of all they fun they had swimming in the waves and sitting on the beach relaxing. With seven children to take care of she definitely deserved the rest and relaxation. She had the most amazing stories of her childhood days. She always spoke of them fondly. She loved her family and took care of them faithfully. Her dad was her hero. Ruth was also very thankful for all of her friends and neighbors who faithfully dropped by to visit or help her when needed. They were a real strength for her and she couldn’t have made it on her own as long as she did without them. Her children thank you for being such wonderful, loving people. We were honored to have her for our mom. There will be a small memorial on Saturday April 4th at 1:00 pm. 3346 – 59th Ave SW Seattle, WA 98116 Instead of flowers, please send a donation to PAWs or your favorite charity in Ruth’s name. She always gave what she could, especially to PAWs.