Ruth Gladys Bell

Ruth G. Bell, 90, of 93 Chellis Road, died Wednesday at her home following a yearlong illness. She was born in Saugus, MA, August 23, 1914, a daughter of Winfred T. and Leona (Lanctot) Townsend.She graduated from Lowell, MA, High School in 1933 and then worked in a five and dime until she married in 1938. Her husband was a U. S. Border Patrol Officer and they moved along the northern border in Maine and Vermont while raising their family.Mrs. Bell was active in the PTA and 4H Club in the various communities she lived in. She was also on the Advisory Board of Rainbow For Girls and was a recipient of the Grand Cross of Color in Houlton, ME in the '60's.She was a member of the West Newfield Congregational Church and the West Newfiled Women's Fellowship. She was a life member of the Fern Chapter, Order of Eastern Star in Alfred and was a life member of the Newfield Historical Society.Mrs. Bell enjoyed knitting cat blankets for the animal shelter, and she also knitted spare mittens for her daughter's school classroom. She very much liked gardening and feeding the birds around her home. Also, she was known for her fudge at all sorts of local food sales.She was predeceased by her husband of 36 years, Roland E. Bell in 1975, a sister, Beatrice Bennett in 2000, a granddaughter, Diane Bean in 1963 and a son-in-law, C. Lee Collins in 1996.She is survived by a son, David H. Bell of Deering, NH; 4 daughters, Barbara and her husband Thurland Thorne of Newfield, Carolyn and her husband Alan Lane of Goffstown, NH, Martha Collins of Berwick and Mary and her husband Lawrence Scott of Callicoon, NY; a sister, Dorothy Nichols of Milford, NH; 21 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great-grandchild.Relatives and friends may call at the Heald Funeral Home, 580 Main Street Springvale on Sunday from 2-4 & 6-8 pm. A funeral service will be at 11:00 am Monday, January 10, 2005 in the West Newfield Congregational Church, with the Rev. Franklin Anderson, pastor, officiating. Interment in the spring will be in Center Cemetery, Dunstable, MA.For those who desire, memorial contributions in Mrs. Bell's name may be made to: Beacon Hospice, 600 Roundwood Dr., Scarborough, ME 04074 or Newfield Rescue, P. O. Box 170, West Newfield, ME 04095.