PORTLAND – Ruth G. Jacobs, 92, of Portland and formerly of Manchester, Conn., died peacefully at the Cedars on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020.

She was the cherished wife for almost 68 years of Ronald Kaplan Jacobs, who predeceased her in 2017. Born in Hartford, Conn., she was the daughter of Morris Greenwald and Ethel Liss. She was a graduate of Weaver High School and attended college for two years. Ruth had two professions. The first was as a secretary to her husband in his law practice, and the second was working for the Town of Manchester, Conn., first in the Social Services Department and subsequently for the Senior Center.

She was a long-time member of Temple Beth Sholom (now Beth Sholom B’Nai Israel) and was active in Hadassah. Ruth was a loving and devoted wife, mother, sister, aunt, grandmother and great-grandmother. Ruth was a beloved grandmother, known for giving visiting grandchildren ice cream for breakfast and seeing to their every wish. She loved hearing about their accomplishments, be they big or small.

She and her husband enjoyed square dancing and bridge in their earlier years; they took to canasta and traveling later on. Ruth was also an accomplished stained-glass maker. She and Ronnie took numerous trips to Israel and overseas locations, spent weekends in the summer at Shelter Harbor, and went to Aruba annually for over 30 years. In June of 2016, Ruth and her husband moved to Atria Assisted Living in Scarborough from Manchester, Conn.

Ruth is survived by her daughter, Linda Jacobs and her husband Joseph Manning of Cape Elizabeth, her son, David Jacobs and his wife Louise Akillian of Lincoln, Mass., her son, Mark Jack Edwards and his wife Susan Edwards; grandchildren, Samantha and her husband Paul, Elizabeth and her husband Roy, Stephanie and her husband Aryeh, Rebecca, Alexander and Benjamin; a great-granddaughter, Adelaide and a great-grandson, Reuben. Ruth is also survived by her sister, Marion Rabin, of Florida.

A private graveside service was held on Monday, Nov. 23, in Manchester, Conn. Funeral arrangements provided by Hebrew Funeral Association, West Hartford, Conn.

Contributions in Ruth’s memory should be made to the

Animal Rescue League of Greater Portland,

217 Landing Rd.,

Westbrook, ME 04092 or the

Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, Zachs Campus,

333 Bloomfield Ave., Suite C,

West Hartford, CT 06117.


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