COLFAX — Ruth Buie McAllister died peacefully on January 26, 2013 surrounded by her family. Ruth was a resident of River Landing at Sandy Ridge in Colfax, North Carolina.
Ruth was born on March 17, 1927 in High Point, North Carolina, the daughter of Andrew Lee Buie and Kate Welch Buie, who preceded her in death.
On August 7, 1947 she married John C. (JC) McAllister Jr., who died on July 14, 2009. She was preceded in death by her son Gregory A. McAllister, her sister Nancy Buie, and her brother Darrell Buie. Ruth is survived by her sons Kenneth W. McAllister and his wife Jane, Stephen M. McAllister and his wife Kem, and daughter Martha McAllister Bass and her husband R.Edwin Bass, Jr., all of High Point. Also surviving are Ruth's four grandchildren, Katherine M. Gorrell and husband Zac of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Margaret Lyon McAllister of Nashville, Tennessee, Mary Reynolds McAllister of Raleigh, North Carolina, and Kenneth Grey McAllister of Blacksburg, Virginia. Ruth is survived by three great-grandchildren, Evan L. Gorrell, Amanda M. Gorrell, and Tyler M. Gorrell, all of Colorado. She is also survived by her brother Andrew Leo Buie and wife Madeline, of Florida.
Ruth graduated from Asheboro High School and attended Mars Hill College. At the time of her death, she was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of High Point. For many years Ruth was a member of Green Street Baptist Church, where she taught Sunday School.
Ruth was a former Gray Lady with the High Point Red Cross, a former member of the High Point Women's Club and High Point Literary Society, and a former volunteer for Mobile Meals.
She was a gentle, loving, nurturing and kind lady, and a devoted wife, mother, sister, and grandmother. But there lived within this gentle lady a "spunk" that created in her life a wonderful sense of joy and humor, and a strong resilience, which allowed her to face boldly some of the challenges life brought her way.
A memorial service to honor Ruth's life will be held in the Multipurpose room at River Landing at Sandy Ridge on Tuesday, January 29, 2013 at 1 p.m. The family will receive friends there after the service. There will be a private burial with the family.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the River Landing at Sandy Ridge Foundation, 1575 John Knox Drive, Colfax, North Carolina, 27235, or the
.
The family wishes to extend its deepest gratitude and praise to the entire staff of individuals of the Skilled Nursing Unit, Pebble Beach 2 at River Landing for their friendship and extraordinary care to Ruth over the years.
Online condolences may be made on Mrs. McAllister's memorial page at www.cumbyfuneral.com Arrangements by Cumby Family Funeral Service, High Point.
