F. Ruth (Beuley) MacArthur

Ruth MacArthur, age 92, peacefully passed away on Thursday, August 22, 2019 at the Shrewsbury Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Shrewsbury MA.

She was born on May 16, 1927 to Russell and Dorothy Beuley and was raised in Newton, MA. She was married to Curtis S. MacArthur on May 29, 1948 and moved to Watertown, MA to start their family.  In 1961, the family moved to Needham, MA where Ruth spent 56 years as a devoted wife and mother as well as a long time volunteer at the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Needham.

She is predeceased by her beloved husband Curtis and leaves behind five sons, Stephen and his wife Ruth of Northborough, MA, Richard of Needham, MA, Peter and his wife Helen of Holliston, MA, Timothy and his wife Marilyn of Farmington, NH and Paul and his wife Shari of Braintree MA. Twelve grandchildren and two great grandchildren survive her. She was also the older sister of the late Patricia Dean.

As a young woman during WWII Ruth volunteered in the Civil Air Patrol and worked on the factory lines assembling aircraft for the war effort.  That was only the beginning of her long history of volunteering. Her passion for volunteering in her community earned her the Book of Golden Deeds Award from the Needham Exchange Club in 2011. Ruth spent over 20,000 hours over the years working in many roles for the hospital Volunteer Services. Some of her favorite roles were managing the Diversional Cart and visiting with patients, young and old, taking the time to make crafts with them and offer a warm smile and a reassuring word. She enjoyed working with and mentoring many young high school volunteers, and she worked tirelessly in the hospital coffee shop baking, cooking and serving staff and visitors. Over the years she took on many responsibilities acting as Chairwoman and Treasurer of different committees that planned events and fundraisers.

Ruth and her family spent many vacations in the Lake Winnipesaukee NH area. One of her fondest memories was that she outshined all the men in her family by catching the biggest fish ever. She was also a Disney enthusiast, visiting the Park as often as she could with her children and grandchildren. Had she not married and had children her dream was to be a Disney artist.

Her family will miss her constant encouragement and support and her smile.

Visiting hours will be at the Eaton Funeral Home, 1351 Highland Avenue, Needham, MA on MONDAY SEPT 2, from 4-7. Funeral services will be held at the Congregational Church of Needham, 1154 Great Plain Avenue, Needham, MA on September 3rd, at 11 am.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Ruth’s memory to the Alzheimer’s Association (www.alz.org)

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