Ruth B. (Burgess) Crocker

Ruth (Burgess) Crocker, 86, passed away peacefully on October 6, 2021. Formerly of Hinsdale, MA, Ruth was the wife of the late Earle B. Crocker, Jr., to whom she was married for 60 years.

Born November 8,1934 in Woonsocket, RI, she was the daughter of the late George E. Burgess and Grace E. (Burlingame) Burgess. A 1952 graduate of Woonsocket High School, Ruth earned her Registered Nursing degree from Roger Williams General Hospital School of Nursing in 1955. She was an active member of the Roger Williams Hospital Nurses Alumnae Association throughout her life, an associate member of the Henry Bishop III Memorial Alumnae, and a member of the Massachusetts Nurses Association.

Ruth's nursing career spanned 23 years, caring for patients at Woonsocket and Roger Williams General Hospitals in RI, and at Pittsfield General, Berkshire Medical Center, and Hillcrest Hospitals in MA. She was a charter member of the first Surgical Day care unit at Hillcrest Hospital. Her caregiving extended beyond the hospital walls, always dedicated to helping any family member, friend or neighbor in need.

Ruth was an active parishioner at the First Baptist Church in Pittsfield, MA where she taught Sunday School, was member of the Myra Whittaker Chapter, and served on many committees including efforts to set up and organize a new church library. An avid golfer, she served as secretary of the Wahconah Country Club ladies' golf league for six years in Dalton, MA. She was a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity and a member of the Friends of the Hinsdale, MA Library. Her passion for being active and creative extended to reading, gardening, needlework, sewing, decorating, and preparing abundant meals or treats for anyone she welcomed into her home. Ruth's favorite activities were spending time with her family and traveling with her husband, Earle.

Ruth leaves her children Allyson (Crocker) Duval and her husband James, James Crocker and his wife Deborah, Virginia Crocker Timmins and her husband Mark, Jeffrey Crocker and his wife Rebecca; and eight grandchildren. In addition to her husband, Earle, she is predeceased by her siblings Eleanor Larson, Beverly Holt, and William Burgess.

The family will hold a private service in celebration of Ruth's life at Union Cemetery in North Smithfield, RI. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Ruth's memory to "First Baptist Church Living Gifts for Growth Fund", C/O First Baptist Church, 88 South Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201.