Ruth Williams Butts 1929 – 2020 HARTFORD, Conn. – Ruth Williams Butts, formerly of Augusta, died on Tuesday, May 26, 2020 in Hartford, Conn. at the age of 90. Ruth was born July 18, 1929 in Bath to Daniel Winchell Williams and Elizabeth (Moores) Williams. She graduated from Morse High School in Bath in 1947 and received an associates degree in science from Endicott Junior College in Beverly, Mass. in 1949. With a college degree in hand, Ruth moved to Boston, Mass., where she worked, sang at a local radio station, and met the man with whom she would share a 65-year marriage. Ruth and John Knowlton Butts were married in Bath in 1951, and they soon moved to Augusta where they built a life and family in their home on Riverton Street. Ruth held jobs throughout her life with the Maine State Legislature and the Maine Good Roads Association, as well as for Court Reporter Margaret Paine and Dr. Erwin Seyward. She was deeply committed to her communities in both Bath and Augusta, serving as a vocalist at the Winthrop Street Universalist Church and as a member of the Beta Sigma Phi sorority. Ruth also remained involved with the Morse High School Alumni Association as the president of her class, planning reunions and remaining connected with classmates for most of her life. She was a beautiful singer, a talented cook and baker, an eager conversationalist, an avid walker, and a beloved, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend. She poured her heart and soul into the family cottage in West Bath, filling flower beds with marigolds, impatiens, and begonias and the kitchen with aromas of her famous cookies, creating a warm and welcoming space for family, friends, and visitors, all of whom she welcomed back again and again. She found joy in many things, but perhaps nothing made her happier than sitting in her white rocking chair on the front porch, watching the sun rise and set and the tide ebb and flow over Winnegance Bay. Ruth’s legacy, without a doubt, will be her extraordinary kindness, which was her defining characteristic. It came naturally; she lived a life of conviviality, generosity, humility, good humor, and deep compassion for everyone around her. She had the uncommon ability to always see the good in people – perhaps because simply being around her brought out the very best in them. Of those who knew Ruth throughout her life, many would agree that she was the kindest person they ever met. She will be remembered for the love she put selflessly and ceaselessly into the world. Ruth is predeceased by her husband of 65 years, John Knowlton Butts, her sister, Elizabeth (Williams) Baker, and her niece Elizabeth Ann (Baker) Lamborn. She is survived by her three sons, Daniel Butts and partner Julie Michaud of Mapleton, Maine, John and Cindy Butts of South Windsor, Conn., and Thomas Butts of Reston, Va. and his partner Tom Salyachivin of Lorton, Va.; six grandchildren, Ashley and husband Travis Moore of Durham, Daniel Butts and wife Kaitlyn of Mapleton, Annie Butts of Brooklyn, N.Y., Michael Butts of Queens, N.Y., Kyle and Christopher Salyachivin of Lorton, Va.; two great-grandchildren, Emmett and Caroline Butts of Mapleton; three nephews, David and Magna Dodge of Cornwall, Vt., Richard Baker of Lambertville, N.J., and John Dodge and wife Ann Dooley of West Newbury, Mass., and their children Christopher Dodge of Washington, D.C. and Katie Dodge of East Boston, Mass. A celebration of life for Ruth will be held when social restrictions have been lifted. Arrangements are in the care of Knowlton and Hewins Funeral Home, One Church Street, Augusta. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the funeral home website at http://www.familyfirstfuneralhomes.com . The family requests that any donations in her memory be made to: Morse High School Scholarship Fund (checks payable in that name) P.O. Box 1030 Bath, ME 04530

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