After a brief illness, Ruth Allen Gordon Richards passed away peacefully in Boston, Massachusetts early in the morning of March 10, 2018. She was 95 years old.
Ruth was born to the late Ruth and Douglas Gordon in Trenton, New Jersey on January 2, 1923. She was the second of five children: Kathryn, Douglas Jr. (“Bud”), Warren (“Googie”) and Marion. Given that Ruth and her mother shared the same name, her family called her “Sis.”
Ruth graduated from Clifford Scott High School in East Orange, New Jersey and received a bachelor’s degree from Talladega College, a historically black college in Alabama, in 1944. In her Freshman year at Talladega, Ruth met Frank O. Richards, from Ashville, North Carolina and they began a romance that would last for over 70 years. The story goes that Frank and his best friend, John Gladney, were sitting on a wall watching the Freshmen girls walk by and spotted Ruth and her best friend, Clarice Taylor (who later became Clarice Gladney). Because Ruth was rather bow-legged, and Clarice was rather knock-kneed, Frank and John liked to joke that when they walked side by side they spelled “OK.”
After graduating Talladega Ruth continued her education at the prestigious Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, from which she received a Masters degree in Social Work (MSW) in 1946. She was one of the first African-American women to receive a Masters in Social Work from the College. Throughout her life, Ruth remained a strong advocate for the importance of social services, and for gender and racial equality in education and in the workplace.
Ruth and Frank married on August 22, 1947 after Frank completed Howard University Medical School. They settled in St. Louis, Missouri, where Frank trained in general surgery at Homer G. Phillips Hospital. Ruth worked for several years as a Social Worker at Children and Family Services of St. Louis before leaving to become a full-time homemaker after her daughter, Susan Corliss, was born in 1951. In 1952, the family moved to Bitburg, Germany, where Frank was commissioned as a Captain in the U.S. Airforce Medical Corps and served as the surgical officer for the 36th Tactical Reconnaissance U.S. Air Force Base Hospital. While the couple was in Germany, their son, Frank Richards, Jr. (“Rick”) was born in1954.
Ruth and Frank returned to St. Louis where Frank entered private practice. Ruth was very involved in local civic activities, including the Coro Foundation, the Urban League and the St. Louis Scholar Shop. It is a testament to Ruth’s skills as a social worker that Children and Family Services of St. Louis approached her about returning to work after Rick graduated from high school. She decided, however, to continue her focus on her civic work.
Ruth was a member of All Saints Episcopal Church, and the St. Louis Chapters of the Smart Set, the Links, the Circle-ets, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Ruth was an avid tennis player, a skilled bridge player, loved to entertain, and was devoted to her family and friends.
After 56 years in St. Louis Ruth and Frank moved in 2010 to ‘The Gables,’ a senior living community near Boston, to be close to their daughter Susan and her husband, Leonard (Gordon) Bannister. Frank passed away in February 2013 after which Ruth continued to enjoy an active social life with her local family and friends at The Gables. Susan and Gordon’s friends adored Ruth and welcomed her into their social circle. Ruth also enjoyed spending time with other St. Louisans, Links, and Archousas (wives of Boule members) in the Boston area.
Ruth is survived by her children, Susan R. Windham-Bannister Ph.D. and Frank O. Richards Jr, M.D., their spouses Gordon and Sherri, and two granddaughters, Alexandra and Lauren. Her memory also will be treasured by the many nieces, nephews, cousins, other family members and lifelong family friends. Ruth’s wish was for cremation. Those wishing to remember Ruth with gifts are asked to contribute in the name of Ruth Gordon Richards Class of 1944 to:
Talladega College
Attn: Office of Institutional Advancement
627 West Battle Street
Talladega, Alabama, 35160
