Ruby Nell Ledbetter Henderson

Ruby Nell Ledbetter Henderson knocked on the heavenly gates on December 24, 2008, joining her husband John who eagerly anticipated her arrival and welcomed her with cries of joy. John's death on November 7, 2008, marked their longest period of separation in 71 years of marriage. Joplin is home to the Henderson family. The funeral service for Ruby will be officiated by the Rev. Loury Drue Nero at Joplin Baptist Church on Wednesday, December 31, 2008, at 2:00 p.m. Burial will follow immediately at Fairview Cemetery, Henderson Ranch Road, Joplin. The family plot overlooks the old Henderson homestead. John and Ruby Nell are home at last. Ruby, the last surviving member of her childhood family, was born in Mingus, February 27, 1919, to Oscar and Nora Ellen Tyler Ledbetter. She is survived by her son James and wife Rosalie of Dallas, daughter Linda Thompson and husband Bob of Austin, and son Lewis and wife Christina of Jean. Surviving grandchildren are John Hayden Henderson, Laura Saeva, Lindsay Winburn, and Clayton Henderson. Great-grandchildren are Clara Winburn, Kate Saeva, and Michael Saeva. Ruby Nell was preceded in death by her husband John; her parents Oscar and Nora Ledbetter; brothers Norman, Thurman, Jimmy, Dickie, Sonny, and infant brother; by her sisters Jocie Cooper and Tootsie Fulmer; and by her infant grandson Jeffrey Hayden Henderson. Ruby Nell and her husband John shared a long and committed life, supporting and complementing one another in good times and bad. Together, they raised three children, enjoyed four grandchildren, delighted in three great-grandchildren, celebrated 71 years of marriage, realized their hopes, endured illness and decline, buried their loved ones, and accepted their losses. Their commitment to one another and to shared goals enabled them to overcome the dulling poverty of the Great Depression, the fearful sacrifices of the global wars, and the disruptive angst of the generational and ethnic struggles of the 20th century. As public school educators they touched the lives of thousands of students in small Texas towns. Their combined teaching careers spanned a total of 66 years, with John serving as teacher, principal, and superintendent of schools for 43 years and Ruby Nell teaching 4th and 3rd grade pupils in Saint Jo and Weatherford for 23 years. Both John and Ruby Nell were born into farming and ranching families, and their love of the land and fealty to the faith and values of their fathers motivated them to frugal lifestyles, allowing their meager earnings to be saved and invested in ranch land. Over a lifetime, they accumulated considerable holdings - much of it given in love to their children, long before time required the dispersal of their estates. Ruby Nell (known as Ruby to the Ledbetters and Ruby Nell to the Hendersons) was a strong, intelligent, and compassionate woman. She loved children. She empathized with those who struggled to overcome ill fortune. She reveled in the beauty and wonder of the natural world. And she was always grateful - to God for his protection, to family and friends for the sharing of joy and burdens, and to strangers for their kindness. John obtained his college education at an early age. Ruby Nell attended Weatherford Junior College and Texas Wesleyan College and later received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees from North Texas State University in her middle years, after the births of three children. This effort required lengthy daily commutes, with studying added to the many tasks supportive of her family. Perhaps as a consequence of her late blooming, she championed the value of education, urging all within earshot to continuing studies. She believed that education opened the doors to a better life, tilting the balance of fate from poverty to possibility. During her last stay in the hospital, wrestling with the cance