James Douglas (Jim) Ruth was born July 21, 1930, in Kansas City, Missouri. He was the son of George W. Ruth and Elizabeth Sidle Ruth. He passed peacefully on Aug. 29, 2026, at the age of 96.
Jim spent most of his childhood in Denver, Colorado. During his high school years, his father went through a series of job-related moves that took the family to Kansas City and El Paso. Jim went to three high schools in three years, graduating from El Paso High School in 1949. He attended Texas College of Mines (now Texas A&M) for one year before being drafted into the Korean War. He joined the Navy and was stationed in Okinawa, Japan. His naval enlistment took him to California. After his tour of duty was complete, he stayed and, at the suggestion of some Navy friends, he attended Cal State University at Chico. He studied his prerequisites for forestry school.
He also worked on the Lassen National Park fire crew the first summer after attending Cal State Chico. While working at Lassen, he met a cute waitress at the park lodge. Jim and Marion dated all summer. They were engaged by December and married in September 1957. After they married, Jim transferred to the University of California at Berkeley for his forestry degree.
Upon graduation, Jim worked briefly for the California Redwood Association doing public relations. He and Marion moved to Northern California. In 1965, he accepted a job with the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR). He worked for the DNR for 32 years, first in Longview and then in Chehalis.
Jim and Marion moved their family to Chehalis in August 1969. Their daughter, Sandra, was 3 years old, and their son, Doug, was 2. Almost immediately, Jim was called out on a forest fire, and Marion was left to settle in on her own for the first few days. They spent 56 years in Chehalis, attending St. John’s Lutheran Church, active in Republican politics and busy with kids’ activities.
In 1980, they purchased Mother Hubbard’s Daycare & Preschool, which Marion operated for 27 years. In 1989, they took their first international trip. They went to the U.K., and this became a passion they both enjoyed for the next 18 years. Jim did much of the travel planning, which he truly loved. They visited more than 15 countries in Asia, Europe and Central America.
Jim retired in 1995. A career highlight for him was his involvement with the fire investigation team, doing research on the origins of various forest fires. His retirement years were spent actively building houses with Lewis County Habitat for Humanity. He also worked with Mission Builders when St. John’s added a sizable wing to the church. He regularly did small maintenance projects for the church in his retirement years. He was on the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity and was very proud of the homes they provided for numerous families in the area.
Over the course of his life, he enjoyed woodworking, fishing and photography, and he was a voracious reader. He was widowed in 2014 when Marion passed but still stayed active with travel, construction and enjoying performing arts events in Chehalis and Seattle. Jim moved to memory care in Auburn in January 2025 and passed peacefully on Aug. 29, 2026.
He was preceded in death by his parents, sister and wife, Marion, as well as two nephews and one great-nephew. He is survived by his two children, Sandra Ruth Anderson (Sean Caraway) and Douglas Paul Ruth (Brianna Peterson); his grandsons, Jordan and Ian Anderson and Eli Ruth; along with his sister-in-law, niece, nephews and their families.
There will be a memorial service at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Chehalis on Sept. 26, 2026, at 11 a.m. All are welcome. Final burial will take place in San Francisco in December. In lieu of flowers, donations to Habitat for Humanity are welcomed and appreciated.
