Ruth C. Hamlin, 87, formerly of Libby

Ruth Carolyn Hamlin, surrounded by her three children, went peacefully to be with the Lord on July 5, 2011 at the home of her son in Bozeman, Mont.

She was born on April 5, 1924, on a farm outside Stanton, Iowa, to Paul and Myrtle (Lantz) Anderson.

She attended country schools for eight years and graduated from Stanton High School in 1941. She then graduated from Van Sandt School of Business in Omaha, Neb., and worked for several businesses in Omaha and Red Oak, Iowa, including the Thomas Murphy Calendar Company and Travelers Insurance before moving to Riverside, Calif.

There, she worked for the U. S. Army as a civilian employee at Camp Haan, a prisoner-of-war internment facility, where she met her future husband, Sgt. Claude Hamlin.

After World War II ended, Ruth attended Luther College in Wahoo, Neb., and in 1948, worked for the Veterans Administration in San Francisco.

Ruth and Claude were married in Stanton, Iowa, on July 2, 1949, and went to live in Warland, Mont., where Claude (Slim) was employed by J. Neils Lumber Co. They then lived in Rexford, Mont., for 15 years, moving to Libby in 1966 when the coming construction of Libby Dam and Lake Koocanusa would flood their property at Rexford.

Ruth was a homemaker until 1970, but after the death of her husband, she worked for several businesses in Libby, retiring as bookkeeper/treasurer of the Libby Senior Citizens Center. She enjoyed many happy associations at the Libby Senior Center, including the Kit Kat Band, road trips, and visiting.

 In 1996, she moved to Bozeman, Mont., to be near her son, Ken. While there, she was a member of First Lutheran Church and enjoyed trips to visit her daughter in Oregon and son in Great Falls as well as road trips with her daughter to visit relatives in Colorado, South Dakota, Iowa, New York, and Alabama.

Ruth was preceded in death by her father, Paul Anderson, in 1943, stepfather Carl Levine in 1969, her husband, Claude, in 1970, and mother Myrtle in 1989, step-brother Alan Levine and step-sister Dorothy Lundgren.

Ruth is survived by step-brother Ron Levine of Creston, Iowa; son Ken (Pat) of Bozeman, Montana, daughter Joyce (William) Lewis of Glide, Oregon and son Paul (Pat) of Great Falls, Mont.; grandchildren Nicole Lewis of Florence, Italy, Meredith Brandal (Glenn) of Livingston, Mont., Bryan Barnes of Billings, Mont., Tony (Wanda) Shafer of Great Falls, Mont., Tracy Park (Larry) of Great Falls, Mont., and Jason Perigen of Roseburg, Ore.; great grandchildren Destry and Devin Brandal of Livingston, Mont., Kalen Park of Great Falls, Mont., Alec Perigen of Fort Sill, Okla., and Maddy and Laney Perigen of Bozeman, Mont.

Services will be held in her hometown of Stanton, Iowa, with interment beside her husband Claude.

Any Memorial gifts may be made to the Libby Senior Citizens Center or charity of the donor’s choice.