Ruth Elizabeth Sponheim

Ruth Elizabeth Sponheim passed away on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. 

Ruth Elizabeth Sponheim was born to Arthur and Gertie (Maakestad) Sponheim on November 25, 1929, at their farm home near Osage. She attended Rock #7 Country School for her elementary years. Osage schools did not have school bus routes when she was in high school, so she lived with her Maakestad grandparents in Osage for 4 years, graduating in 1947. She attended and graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota in 1951 with a teaching degree in English and history.

Her first teaching position was at the Clear Lake High School where she had two jobs, English teacher and librarian. She was there for 15 years until the end of the 1966 school year when she resigned from her position to attend the University of Minnesota Master's degree program in library science. In the fall of 1967, she began her new career at the Fort Dodge Senior High School as the head librarian, a position she held for 33 years until she retired in 2000, at age 70.

After retirement she returned to Osage and spent 20 years working at the Osage Public Library until the Covid pandemic when she retired a second time at age 90.

Ruth was an exceptional pianist and organist. She played for both of her churches, Rock Creek in Meroa (by Osage) and St. Olaf in Fort Dodge. At Rock Creek Lutheran Church she was part of Lydia Mission Circle and the Eunice Circle, she often prepared the Bible Studies because she was good at it and enjoyed doing it. She was deeply devoted to her church; a woman of unwavering faith and abundant grace. In Fort Dodge she was also involved in the Damascus Road Prison Ministry where she visited and shared the word of God with inmates at the Correctional Facility.

She very much enjoyed her friends and the monthly meeting topics at the Cedar Valley Retired School Personnel Association which she attended regularly. She was brilliant, well read and could visit with anybody.

Ruth loved and cherished her family.

The four nieces and four nephews as well as the "greats" were all blessed with her love, humor and the lasting impact of her commitment, example and support. She was always a central figure at our birthdays, baptisms, confirmations, graduations, weddings, holidays, etc. She was a very good cook, and we could always count on her to bring whatever we asked, which always included her famous chocolate chip dessert (now passed down to Hughie) and Snicker salad. In these past years she has even turned her house over to us to do the work of holiday or birthday gatherings while she relaxed and visited with at least three lively generations! For many years she organized the Sponheim reunion, being the caretaker of all the relatives’ information and the pictures from each year. She also attended the annual Maakestad reunion without fail.

She immensely enjoyed traveling and took many overseas trips with friends and family; she was very generous and always brought each of us a souvenir. Although we never heard of one she didn't enjoy, some favorites were Scandinavia, Alaska, Hawaii, Great Britain, Nova Scotia, Europe and the Mediterranean.

Ruth is survived by her eight nieces and nephews and their families: Annette Hugi Johnson of Spring Valley, MN, Julie Hugi (Joe) Sanchez of Mason City, Leon (Denise) Hugi of Mason City, Steven Hugi of Mason City, Ingrid Sponheim (Steve) Dravland of Sioux Falls, Hugh (Roberta) Hugi of Mason City, Elizabeth Sponheim of New York, NY and Harold (Jeannie) Sponheim of Loveland, CO. She is also survived by 17 greats as well as 25 great-great nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Harold and sister-in-law Margaret (Field) Sponheim; sisters, Dorothe Sponheim and Gertrude Sponheim Chehock Hugi; brothers-in-law, Lester Chehock and Eugene Hugi; sister-in -law, Helen Hugi and nephew-in-law Buster Johnson.

A funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, August 7, 2026, at Rock Creek Lutheran Church, 3269 Foothill Ave. Osage, Iowa. Burial will be at Rock Creek Cemetery. There will be a visitation from 9:30 - 11:00 a.m. on Friday, August 7,2026 at Rock Creek Lutheran Church prior to the service. Hoff Celebrations - Champion Chapel of Osage is assisting the family with arrangements.

"Well done thou good and faithful servant." Matthew 25:23