Kathryn R. (Ruth) MacKay of Hingham, Weymouth, Boston and Somerville, former wife of the late Hal T. Frank of Poland, Maine and Boston, died peacefully in the morning of 13 Nov 2015 in Scituate, Massachusetts in the home of her daughter Brenda R. (Frank) Charrier in the company of her daughter and grandchildren. An 11-year resident of Linden Ponds in Hingham, Ruth was born in Medford, Mass on 29 June 1929 to Neil and Sara C. (MacKiegan) MacKay. She grew up in Somerville and graduated from Somerville High School in the class of 1947. She studied Nursing at Boston City Hospital and Malden Hospital receiving her R.N. from the latter in 1952. She received her Masters Degree from Antioch University later in her career. She worked for many years as a psychiatric nurse supervisor at Boston State Hospital and later at Dr. Solomon Carter Fuller Mental Health Center in Boston. After her retirement she continued to volunteer her nursing services in various shelters and clinics and wherever she was needed. She leaves behind two daughters and one son: Brenda (Frank) Charrier of Scituate, Sara C. Frank of Westminster and COL Thomas W. Frank, M.D, an Army physician currently stationed in Germany, as well as six loving grandchildren (Rebecca K. Frank-Yeary; Emily R. (Frank-Yeary) Devlin; Alex Charrier; David Charrier; Daniel Charrier and Samantha J.S. Frank).. She also leaves behind her sister Jean E. (MacKay) Fitzgerald of Rancho Palos Verdes, California, numerous doting nieces and nephews, two very close friends, Joan Merrill of Hull and Janet Williams of Sedgwick, Maine and one cousin Thelma (MacDonald) McCurdy who were as close, as dear and as beloved as sisters. She was pre-deceased by her brother Neil Gordon MacKay of Somerville, Isabel (MacKay) Mulhern of Wakefield and Lynn, and Donald D. MacKay of Londonderry, NH, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia and California.

So much for the stats….but who was Kathryn Ruth MacKay? Here is what those who loved her say: "She was my sunshine" (Daughter Sara)…. "Full of life and joy"..."Mischief... she embodied it." (Nephew Dennis MacDonald). If she couldn't beat you at Scrabble – you were a professional who played on the circuit (she was really pretty good) … She dropped everything if anyone, whether known to her or not, was sick, or being unjustly treated. She was principled and would sacrifice to support a cause she believed in. She once went without electricity during several cold winter weeks while, as a member of the Consumer's Organization for Fair Energy Equality she protested an oil surcharge on her electricity bill. She believed in being direct and honest and very kind. "If you can't say something nice about somebody, don't say it at all. If you have something to say to someone, say it to them and not about them. Be quicker to compliment than to complain." These were all stock phrases that never became trite and were always used when appropriate. If a room wasn't smiling when she entered it, it was smiling before she left. She made people happy. "If somebody told her they admired her pocketbook, she took everything out of it and gave it to them. She loved travel and adventure. She rode an elephant in Thailand by herself and explored an ancient silver mine in the Czech Republic with her son and her somewhat more reluctant sister Jean. She loved the bungalow that belonged to her immigrant ancestors at Marion Bridge, Cape Breton Nova Scotia, and Scotland… their ancestral home. She read voraciously and when engrossed in a book, everything else waited, including housework, errands, all of the things that she normally would take care of very efficiently and quickly and on schedule. She loved the seashore, the winds and waves, the sound of the surf and the smell of the salt air"… (Daughter Brenda) She was an amazing grandmother. Her grandchildren delight in sharing "Grammy" anecdotes . She was at once irreverent, hilarious, disarming, courageous, generous, strong willed and stubborn, outspoken and fiercely independent. She was a strict mother, expecting her children to have good manners to be honest and respectful (all of her children know what soap tastes like… because if she said she threatened to "wash your mouth out with soap"…she did). But she also did not hesitate to challenge the status quo if she felt that an injustice was being done to anybody or any group of people. "She loved life Theater and human conviviality. She loved movies, Italian food the North End …. bootleg wine. No matter what we did, popular or not, if she believed we were standing for the right thing, she supported us and was our loudest cheerleader. " (Daughter Brenda) She detested racism and prejudice and inculcated a respect for people and intolerance for bigotry in her children. "It didn't matter who you were, if you were with Aunt Ruthie, she made you feel like the most important person in the world. Aunt Ruthie loved everyone but not like an idiot who just says they love everybody. She always saw the good in people. But if Aunt Ruthie didn't like someone, it was for a very good reason, and I didn't like them either." (Niece Jean Mulhern). "An amazingly beautiful spirit" (Nephew Bruce MacKay). "Every minute of every day of her life was happy. She loved all the classic old hymns, classical music, her grandson Daniel's and granddaughter Samantha's Irish stepdancing, Celtic music. Her beloved older sister Jean (MacKay) Fitzgerald of Rancho Palos Verdes, California was a light in her life. "My mother was a kind, gentle, generous, giving, impish woman who was full of life and full of love. As her son, I could never calculate my debt to her and she would never want me to. She was loved by all who knew her and will be dearly missed by all who loved her." (Son Tom). Rest in Peace mother dear. Thank you for giving us life and teaching us love.

The family welcomes friends and loved ones to celebrate Ruth's life in the Magoun-Biggins Funeral Home, 135 Union St., Rockland MA 02370, on Friday November 20, 2015 from 4-7 PM. A funeral will be held in the South Shore Baptist Church, 578 Main St. Hingham MA 02043, on Saturday November 21, 2015 at 11:00 AM. Burial will follow the Funeral Services in the Puritan Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Peabody. For directions or additional information please visit www.magounbiggins.com.