Ruth (Sailor) Balch Lee

PORTLAND – Ruth (Sailor) Balch Lee passed from this Earth on Nov. 20, 2024, at the age of 99 years, after a long, rich and impactful life.

Ruth was born on Nov. 8, 1925 in Portland, Ore., to George and Louise (Small) Sailor. She had two half-brothers, George and Charles Sailor.

During the Great Depression, Ruth lived in Palo Alto, Calif., after which the family moved east to Reading, Mass. and spent summers at a camp in Fryeburg. There, her mother developed cancer and died when Ruth was 8 years old. Ruth and her father moved back west to Portland, Ore.

After high school in 1943 (during World War II), she worked in the Kaiser shipyard in Vancouver, Wash. as a shipyard messenger. After the war, she attended the University of Maine in Orono for two years until her family ran out of money. She then worked for the Appalachian Mountain Club at Pinkham Notch, N.H., after which she moved to Boston, Mass. and worked in an architecture office at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. This sparked her love of all types of design and motivated her to attend the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in Providence, R.I., where she graduated with a B.F.A. in Apparel Design in 1949. From RISD, she started a business as a sandal maker in Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., which was highly successful.

Shortly thereafter, she married William Balch and had three sons, Benjamin, Nathaniel and William “Barney”. They settled in Wayland, Mass. and then moved to Rockport, Mass. in 1959. During this time, she ran “Sandy Bay Sandals” on Bearskin Neck in Rockport and raised her three boys. Ruth immersed herself in her boys’ lives, and enriched their childhoods with her buoyant, creative spirit in art, music and adventure. She similarly touched the lives of the Rockport community by being active in school, scouting and music programs. She encouraged her boys to be outside in nature whenever possible.

Her first marriage ended in divorce whereupon she moved to Boston, Mass. in the late 1960s and found work as a designer in an architecture firm. Then, using her design experience, she began buying and renovating apartment buildings (eight in all). She met her second husband Frank F. Lee, a Northeastern University sociology professor, and in 1975 they married and settled in Wellesley, Mass. Shortly thereafter they moved to Santa Fe, N.M. where they happily lived for 28 years. Ruth and Frank moved to 75 State Street in Portland in 2011; Frank died in 2013 and Ruth continued to live there until her own death.

Music was always an important thread in Ruth’s life. She took piano lessons for nine years, including a year of instruction with Will Kenton, Stan Kenton’s brother. She loved classical music, the swinging jazz from the 1940s, and the folk music of Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie; she instilled this love of music in her boys. She achieved great joy watching her children and grandchildren carry-on this musical tradition.

Ruth volunteered at the Salvation Army of Santa Fe for many years, working in the office, on the Advisory Board, secretary for the board and eventually, chairwoman of the Thrift Store Committee.

She was deeply loved by her family; they had wonderful times together in both New Mexico and New England. She will be sorely missed.

Ruth is survived by sons Benjamin Sailor Balch (Newton, Mass.), Nathaniel Small Balch (Durham, N.H.) and William McKay “Barney” Balch with spouse Patricia Matrai (Newcastle) as well as stepchildren Margaret Lee Peterson with spouse Phil Peterson (Albuquerque, N.M.), Burton H. Lee (Palo Alto, Calif.) and Susan F. Lee (Arlington, Va.); plus four grandchildren, Eliza with spouse Lilly, Sara with partner Noah, Emily, and Thomas with spouse Ashley, two step-grandchildren, Phillip and Sis; and two great-grandchildren, Freya and Finnigan.

The family wishes to thank 75 State Street and Beacon Hospice for their loving and compassionate care of our mother.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Conroy-Tully Walker Funeral Home. To leave an online condolence, please visit http://www.ConroyTullyWalker.com. A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any donations be made in Ruth’s name to the

Rhode Island School of Design

class of 1949; Alumni Office,

20 Washington Place,

Providence, RI 02903

or the

Salvation Army of Santa Fe

525 W. Alameda St.,

Santa Fe, NM 87501