Obituary of Ruth O'Dell Sanford

March 22, 1929 - February 16, 2024


Ruth Sanford, of Puyallup, WA. passed away peacefully Friday afternoon, February 16th at Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, WA, with her family by her side. Ruth was born on March 22, 1929, in Wilkeson, WA., the daughter of George and Viola (Lias) Harris. She graduated from Puyallup High School in 1947.  Ruth always retained a close connection to her rural childhood, which was a very happy time in her life. She enjoyed being outdoors, picnics and climbing trees. In her adult life, her family was the most important thing to her, and she was never more proud than at her family reunion in 2005, together with her brother and sisters, nieces, nephews and her own children and their families. She returned to farming in the 1960s in Puyallup, sharing her love for country life with her husband and young children. She was also active with technology, spending time in the semi-conductor sector before retiring. After retirement, she stayed connected through the internet and renewed her activities in arts and crafts. She was an accomplished quilt maker, selling her quilts in a NYC boutique and donating many to Seattle Children’s Hospital. Throughout her life she remained an enthusiastic gardener. She augmented her ever-expanding vegetable garden by raising chickens in the 2010s. She was always grateful that she had family to create things for. She appreciated the help and support of her children which allowed her to continue living independently in the home she loved with many adopted neighborhood cats.

She is predeceased by her former husbands: Archie Dodge; Richard Kesling; Lawrence Sanford; and Calvin Walker; her sisters: Opal (Howard) Follin; Iola (Eider) Herstad; Lois Carman; her brothers: Milton Harris; and Edward (Dorothy) Harris; her son-in-law Scott Taylor, her granddaughter Jennifer Sanford and her great-grandson Ethan Sanford.   

Surviving are sons: Michael (Janet) Sanford of Puyallup, WA; Stacey (Pamela) Sanford of McNeal, AZ.; Richard (Elizabeth) Sanford of New York City, NY; daughters: Lauri (Scott) Bingham of Granite Falls, WA.; and Shari Taylor of Bonney Lake, WA.; 12 grandchildren: Shannon, Kristen, Eric, Julian, Amy, Lewis, Lawrence, Ashley, Jessica, Maegen, Sarah and Adam; 15 great-grandchildren; 2 great-great grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Love & Impact will be held at 2:00 pm, March 22, 2024 at the Poodle Dog Restaurant, Grand Century Ballroom 1522 54th Ave E, Fife, WA 98424. Please contact Lauri Bingham at lauri.bingham@outlook.com or 425 350-1116 for details.  Memorial contributions can be made to the Humane Society of Tacoma & Pierce County (Memorials and Tributes - The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County) or the ASPCA (Memorial Gifts | ASPCA).