Ruth A. Ellis, 94, of Orange, Texas, passed away on Monday, August 21, 2017, at Baptist Hospital of Southeast Texas, in Beaumont, Texas.  Funeral service will be held at Dorman Funeral Home, on Friday, August 25, 2017, at 10:00 AM; Darrell Segura officiating.  Rite of Committal and Interment will immediately follow the funeral service at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens. Visitation for family and friends will be held at Dorman Funeral Home, prior to the funeral service, on Friday, August 25, 2017, from 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM, 

On Friday, July 27, 1923, Ruth was born in San Antonio, Texas, to parents Rosy Adeline Condra and William Marin Harris.  Ruth loved life! She was a resident of Bridge City for decades and enjoyed being a mother to her two daughters, Elaine and Carol. Ruth spent hours making beautiful clothes for her girls, including stunning formals. She also welcomed their friends; the house was always abuzz with activity.

Once her daughter, Carol, graduated and married, Ruth went to cosmetology school. Since her youngest daughter, Elaine, was still at home, Ruth had someone to practice what she learned. She opened a cute and functional beauty shop off the garage of their home on Morning Glory, and it thrived. Customers were her friends and she enjoyed her work. Ruth also traveled overseas for several months seeing Spain, England, France, and Germany.  Ruth and her family also bought a place on Toledo Bend near Hemphill, Texas. Ruth loved to fish, play cards with her family, and do all kinds of crafts, including quilting, crochet, and sewing. She also had a fondness for dogs including her beloved Brownie, an abandoned puppy.  Eventually, Ruth opened a shop at her home on the lake, living there full-time, and continued to work there until she was 82.

Ruth loved to cook, collecting cookbooks, and was an avid Southern Living reader. She loved to try new recipes. Even in her 90s, she still poured over her recipe books and advised her daughter, granddaughters, and great granddaughters on recipes. She had to oversee her famous giblet gravy at holidays and her Ranger cookies are a favorite at Christmas. Her pot roast and gravy were a favorite of family members. Ruth also liked to make homemade tamales and enchiladas, a nod to her growing up in San Antonio, Texas.

Ruth’s childhood was tough. Her father died when she was young. A few years later, her Mom died of tuberculosis. She lived in an orphanage on two different occasions, and later went to live with her newly married sister, Sally.  All of that played a part into making her who she was. She was direct, a hard worker, and had a determination to survive.

Ruth’s daughter, Elaine, took her a bag of mints last Christmas. Ruth didn't seem too happy about it. “I don't like them,” she said. “They use to give us a dose of Caster Oil in the orphanage once a month, and then would give us a mint.”

Ruth loved her two daughters, grandchildren and their families, and enjoyed them coming to her house to visit, and go fishing.

Preceding Ruth in death are her parents; husband of 36 years, W.P. “Bill” Ellis; daughter, Carol Dickerson; brother, Walter Harris; and sisters, Sally Creswell and Estelle Barton.

Those who will cherish her memory most are her daughter, Elaine Hearn and her husband, Ray, of Bridge City, Texas; grandchildren, Teresa George, Daren “D-Ray” Hearn, Trae Lawler, and Leanne Lawler; 6 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great-grandchild.

Honoring Ruth as Pallbearers are Ray Hearn, David Hearn, D-Ray Hearn, Kent Dickerson, Walter Harris, and Lyle Overman; Honorary Pallbearers are Jake Paddison and John Paddison.

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