Obituary of Ruth Eleanor Larsen

Our beloved mom, grammie, and auntie Ruth Eleanor Larsen (nee Mersereau) of Regina, SK and longtime resident of the Nokomis/Govan community, passed into the presence of the Lord on Saturday, May 26, 2018 at the age of 96 years. 
 
Ruth was born August 29, 1921, in Hampton, New Brunswick. After dropping out of high school (grade 11) she attended a business college and worked as a stenographer in St John. She served as a Leading Air Woman (LAW) in the RCAF in base hospitals during WW II.  Following the war, Ruth completed her high school, and then trained as an RN at St John General Hospital where she later worked as a private duty nurse. Ruth then moved to Winnipeg in 1958 to work as a nurse and after three years decided on a dare with her dear nursing friend, Enid, to respond to ads in the Western Producer’s Lonely Hearts column. Ruth ended up responding to an ad that Alice Pearson (nee Larsen) had secretly place on her brother’s behalf.  This led to her meeting and marrying, in 1961, the love of her life, Arthur Larsen, who farmed near Nokomis, SK.  After Arthur passed away in 1973, Ruth remained on the farm where she raised her daughters, Linda and Lisa, who attended school in Govan. Ruth and Arthur attended the Govan United Church, and later Ruth attended Nokomis Baptist Church. Ruth moved to Regina from the family farm in 1991 after her health began to fail. For the past 13 years Ruth lived with her daughter Linda and family in Regina.

Mom enjoyed simple pleasures.  She loved tea (it had to be Red Rose), and she would offer tea and cookies to anyone who came by.  She loved reading and handwork such as embroidery, knitting and croqueting afghans.  She very much missed her hobbies and the independence of driving after her eyesight diminished.  Mom was an avid news and world events person, and she had a insatiable curiosity about people and their lives.  She also had a very compassionate and generous heart toward those who were needy or down on their luck.  Mom loved nature.  Birds were especially interesting to her.  One of the harder events in her life was moving off the farm into Regina; she was very sad to give up her independent, rural lifestyle, where she enjoyed the prairie expanse, sky, birds, and the fox family up on the pasture hill.  Mom cared deeply for her friends; phoning them regularly to chat and find out how their days were going.  Mom / Grammie / Auntie so loved her family.  While it took her a long while to marry and have her own children, she spent time enjoying her nieces and nephews in their childhood years.  Her seven grandchildren were very dear to her and she delighted in their growth and their interests and prayed for all their needs, whether it was upcoming tests at school, relationships with friends, or illnesses. Mom enjoyed music.  She was especially happy to hear her grandchildren play music, and so she enthusiastically attended many of their recitals and concerts and listened to hours of practice time.  Ruth loved her Lord Jesus and she believed in the active role of the Holy Spirit in the lives of those who believe.  While she was not a person to take on official duties in her church, she was a woman of prayer and faith.

 
Ruth was predeceased by her father Frederick G. Merserseau (1948) and mother Vera E. Mersereau (1978) of Hampton, NB; husband Arthur Clifford Larsen (1973) of Nokomis, SK; brother Robert in infancy; brother Albert Mersereau (1982) of Toronto; sister Edith Randall (2001) of Toronto; brother Donald Mersereau (2001) of Moncton; sister Edna Reid (2006) of Frederickton Junction, NB; and sister Lois Garron (2008) of Winnipeg.
 
Ruth is survived by sister Martha (Vern) Penner of Argyle, MB; two daughters: Linda (Shane) McLellan of Regina, SK; and Lisa (Rodney) Fairbrother of Consul, SK; McLellan grandchildren: Benjamin (Miranda), Joseph, Abigail, and Rebekah – all of Regina, SK; Fairbrother grandchildren: Hannah, Patrick, and Julia – all of Consul; numerous nieces and nephews across Canada; and lifetime friends Enid Mroske of Pilot Butte, SK, and Mona Belvoir of Watrous, SK.
 
Interment will be held in St Olaf’s Pioneer Cemetery near Govan, SK on Friday, June 15 at 10:00 AM, followed by a fellowship gathering for family and friends at Govan Senior Citizen’s Centre.  A Memorial service will be held later the same day at 2:30 PM at Heritage Alliance Church, Regina, SK.  The family would be happy to receive online messages on this website.  In lieu of flowers, donations in Ruth’s memory may be made to the Canadian National Institute of the Blind (CNIB).