Simon Ruff

Simon "Pete" Ruff Jr. October 25, 1929 ~ February 9, 2015 Simon "Pete" Ruff Jr. passed away on February 9, 2015. He was born in Seminole, OK on October 25, 1929. He was the middle child, with an older sister, Allene, and younger brother, Frank. He grew up a country boy, near the Seminole Nation. He was a story teller extraordinaire and told us often of his riding to school with six or seven other neighbor children atop an old sway-back horse. He moved with his family at the age of 15 to Oakland, CA, for his father's job. He was a very self-determined young man, so at the age of 16, he lied about his age and joined the Army. His desire was to fight either in the European or Pacific Theaters of WWII. His timing was a little too late; the war ended and he never left the states, but served his two years. When he returned home, he was determined to finish high school. The Delano, CA High School principle agreed for him to return to school, with the condition that he would coach the junior varsity baseball team. His love for baseball continued, playing briefly on the Cardinal farm team, and for years after on city-wide men's softball. He was the little league President for several years in East Wenatchee and coordinated the creation of the Douglas County Little League Park. In his early years, he worked some in the surveying business, until going to trade school to become a millwright. He worked mainly on jet engines and for the space industry, until moving to Wenatchee, WA in the fall of 1965. He then began working at Alcoa, where he ended his career supervising the machine shop. God and family were the most important things in his life. He loved the outdoors, hunting, fishing, hiking and camping. Family outings consisted of camping, either in the Redwoods, or the Sierra Nevada mountains, where gold panning and fishing always took place. He always made time for beach camping, as this was his wife, Patti's first love. Over time, his son, Jeff, became his special fishing and hunting buddy and they invited many grandsons or others to attend their annual Elk hunt, using black powder rifles in the latter years. He spent his retirement years driving his grandchildren around and attending all of their sporting or other events. In the fall of 2004, he moved with his wife, Patti, to Quincy, WA, in order to be near his eldest daughter. He rarely met a stranger. In Quincy, he made a new set of retired friends there and joined them for regular coffee and discussion several times a week. He was tough and yet, tender. He took amazing care of the love of his life, Patti, in the last years of her life. He was full of zest for living, thanking God and often seeing the cup, "half full," rather then, "half empty." He was up early and ready to go, always planning his next adventure. He planned to go on a driving trip to California with his brother-in-law, Jerry Coffin, in February of this year. He was often a prankster, with a sense of humor and a twinkle in his eye. He was definitely the lead of the family and his shoes will be empty. He is survived by his children, Julee and Bob Lenderman of Quincy, WA, Janice and Bob Lynch of Clackamas, OR, and Jeff and Christie Ruff of Peshastin, WA; grandchildren, Joel Duncan of Wenatchee, Titus and Stephanie Duncan of Wenatchee, Peter and Cynthia Duncan of Battleground, WA, Drew and Danielle Duncan of Lompoc, CA, Philip Jacks and Teena Anderson of Clackamas, OR, Patrick and Rebekah Jacks of Muncie, IN, Amanda and Peter Griffith of Oregon City, OR, Rachelle Ruff of Peshastin, WA, Nicholas Ruff of Bellingham, WA and Vanessa Ruff of Peshastin, WA; as well as 12 great-grandchildren; and his brother-in-law, Jerry Coffin and family of Ponca City, OK. A Celebration of Life will be held at the Wenatchee Free Methodist Church in Wenatchee WA, on Saturday, February 28, at 11:00 a.m. Arrangements are by Telford's Chapel of the Valley, East Wenatchee. "in lieu of flowers, Please make donations to Quincy Free Methodist Church missions."

Simon Ruff

October 25, 1929 - February 9, 2015