Ruth Miller Hall

Salem, VA – Ruth Inez Miller Hall, age 87, of Salem, VA died peacefully on Tuesday, March 13, 2023 after a long battle with dementia. Born on April 6, 1935, she is the daughter of William Joseph and Juanita Woodward Miller.

Ruth was raised in Saltville, VA and graduated from Saltville High School. Immediately afterwards, she got a job with and moved to the nurses’ cottages at Catawba Sanitorium to be close to her mom who was being treated for tuberculosis. It was there that she met “one of the Catawba boys” (Willard), fell in love, and later married at the Brauer Chapel at Catawba Sanitorium. She and Willard settled in Masons Cove where many happy memories were made. First and foremost, Ruth was a devoted and wonderful mother who chose to stay at home (which she enjoyed very much), providing an example of unselfish love and service. Ruth volunteered with the PTA at Masons Cove Elementary School, as a den mother with the Catawba Cub Scout pack, and in a myriad of roles with Catawba United Methodist Church – where she sang in the choir, taught children’s Sunday School and Vacation Bible School, and served as Treasurer for the Church (and later the full Catawba Charge) for 30+ diligent years. She also worked at East Salem Elementary School, First Virginia Bank, and Salem Bank & Trust, from which she retired. Ruth adored her children and grandchildren and loved to visit with family and friends. She knew the name of every plant and tree you can think to imagine and encroached more and more over time with the flower portion of her and Willard’s garden, which bloomed every year with carefully planted zinnias, hollyhocks, daisies and gladiolas. She and Willard also enjoyed travels in their later years, picking out bus trips across the United States to “see the sights.”

Ruth was preceded in death by her parents; her beloved husband of 66 years, James Willard Hall; her son, Jimmy Hall; an infant daughter; her brother Joe Miller; two half-sisters Ollivean Miller Willie and Vetra Miller Collins; and brother-in-law Wayne Garman. Surviving to cherish her memory and laughter are her daughter Elizabeth (and Brian) Barger of Matthews, NC; and granddaughters Meagan Lineberger (Thomas) of Charlotte, NC and Emily Barger of Arlington, VA. Also surviving are her sisters-in-law Betty Miller, of Saltville, VA and Patty Hall Garman, of Waynesboro, VA; and many cousins, nieces and nephews.

Family and friends are invited to visitation on Saturday, March 18, 11:45 am – 12:45 pm at Lotz Funeral Home in Salem, VA. Pastor Ben Lockhart will lead a memorial service at the Lotz Chapel at 1:00 pm. Burial will follow at Cedar Lawn Memorial Park in Roanoke, VA.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Catawba United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 129, Catawba, VA 24070. The family would also like to express their appreciation for the kind friends at Joseph C. Thomas Memory Care Center and the Health Center at Richfield Living in Salem, VA – who helped care for Ruth during these last few years.

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