Ruth Rebecca Ratzlaff was born to Henry B. and Faith R. Stalter Ratzlaff in Lawrenceville, Illinois on Saturday, October 13th, 1956. She was the sixth of eight children. Ruth lived in Illinois and Indiana with her parents and siblings for the first five years of her life. Then in March of 1962, she moved with her family to Shafter, California where she lived for the remainder of her life. Ruth attended Maple School for one year, and then attended Richland School, graduating from there in June of 1970. She continued her education at Shafter High School. Though she completed the second semester of her senior year at home, she still graduated with her class in June of 1974. Ruth attended Bakersfield College for two years, beginning in the fall of 1980. Ruth accepted Christ as her personal Savior in 1966, when she was 10 years old at a week long Hyman Appleman Crusade meetings being held at the Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church. She answered an alter call and went forward as "Just As I Am" was being sung. She battled God's calling for three nights, until on that third night, the woman sitting next to her in a packed auditorium suddenly moved aside, leaving plenty of room for Ruth to go around her to the front of the church. That was the deciding factor that gave her the courage to answer God's call to accept Him as her personal Savior. She was baptized about three years later and became a member of the South Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church. Ruth attended that church until it disbanded in 1987. She joined the Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church in 1988. Ruth was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in the fall of 1970 at the age of 14. She began undergoing hip and knee joint replacement surgeries in June of 1976. Over the years, Ruth had many replacement surgeries, and got through each one of them with God's courage and strength. She also had the love and support of her family to encourage her when things got rough. She could not have made it through life without God or her family. Ruth started going in to Stringham's Drug store in December of 1984 to help them get caught up on their filing in the office. She ended up staying and helping them out for nearly 21 years until September, 2005, when the business was sold to Rite Aid. She loved her work there. Ruth was preceded in death by both sets of Grandparents; by both of her parents: Faith R. Ratzlaff and Henry B. Ratzlaff, her oldest brother, Stanley Ratzlaff, her brother-in-law Dennis Jones. She was also preceded in death by her adopted sister, Leona Welch. Ruth is survived by her sister-in-law: Linda Ratzlaff; her brother: David and his wife Marilyn; and her five sisters: Lois and her husband, Ken Seybels; Margaret Jones; Chris and her husband Randy Bergman; Carol Ratzlaff; and Joyce and her husband Rick Wilson; her thirteen nieces and nephews, their spouses and children: Christopher and Janna Ratzlaff, and their children Noah and Samantha; Eric Ratzlaff; James Ratzlaff and his daughter, Erin; Melissa Ratzlaff and children, Haley, Katie, Nicolas, and David; Brian Ratzlaff; Jeff and Angie Ratzlaff and their children Ethan, Alaina, Josiah, and Evan; Timmy Ratzlaff; Danny Ratzlaff; Ruth Jones; Andy and Geona Jones and their children Brooklyn and Chasin; Benjamin Jones; and last but not least Jessica Bergman and Ricky Bergman. A memorial service for Ruth will take place at Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church on Friday, October 8, 2021, beginning at 11:00am.