Funeral Service: 2:00 p.m. Friday, September 1, 2017 Foam Lake United Church Foam Lake, Saskatchewan Memorial Donations: Foam Lake United Church or Foam Lake Composite School Ruth Muriel Balaam, born August 7, 1924, was the second eldest of four sisters (Brenda, Jean and Marjorie), raised on a farm in the Invermay district in Saskatchewan. Her parents Elijah and Beatrice (Wood) emigrated from England, and as most pioneers did, they faced many life challenges as their family grew. Beatrice was diagnosed with breast cancer early in the 1930’s. Neighbors and family rallied to support the Balaams, raising money to send her to the Mayo Clinic for treatment, and pitching in on the farm to help out. Beatrice succumbed to cancer in 1934, leaving Elijah to raise four girls through the Great Depression and beyond. Elijah was a lay minister on occasion, and instilled a devout Christian faith in his girls, along with strong values around working hard, being kind and helpful to people, and the importance of family. Ruth often referenced the daily chores and hard work she and her sisters took on to keep the farm going. The girls all attended Mason School and graduated from Invermay High School. During the summer of 1944, Ruth attended Normal School in Regina. Her first teaching job was in a one-room schoolhouse near Kelvington, where she taught grades one to eleven at Manchester School until the end of 1945. Her values of being supportive and taking care of family as a priority were likely behind her decision to resign, as she returned to the farm to assist her younger sisters to finish school, and help her father with daily chores. She returned to Normal School in 1946, this time in Saskatoon, completing her teacher training. Ruth returned to teaching in 1946 in Invermay, and in 1948, she moved to Foam Lake, SK, where she taught elementary school until 1954. During this time, she caught the eye of another young Foam Lake teacher named Bill Gushulak, and in 1952, they were married at her parents’ ranch in Burton, B.C. Their family soon came along: Adair in 1955, Robert (Bob) 1957, and Karen in 1964. Bill became principal of the Foam Lake Composite School in 1957 and through to his retirement in 1977, Ruth was a supportive wife, a meticulous homemaker, and a relentless advocate for her children’s needs. Both she and Bill were deeply involved as volunteers in the Foam Lake United Church and community organizations, role modelling their shared values of supporting others and making the world a better place. Through the years, Ruth was active in pretty much anything related to music, not only in town, but regionally and beyond. She sang in, and directed many choirs, served on Music Festival committees, becoming president of the Quill Plains Music Festival from 1984 to 87 and receiving provincial recognition for it. For 40 years, she organized the annual Foam Lake Music Recital and continued to sing in the United Church choir late into her 80’s. Ruth was deeply committed to Foam Lake’s United Church. Both she and Bill actively lead many committees through the years, sang in the choir, and participated in leading services. She was a faithful UCW member, taught Sunday school, became a church elder in the 1970’s and served on Saskatchewan Presbytery for many years. Those who knew Ruth experienced her passion for documenting family history; not only that of her own family, but also of Foam Lake and surrounding communities. She compiled reams of family records and photos as the “family historian”. In 1979 the Foam Lake Historical Society was formed, and Ruth was president. She and Bill along with a few other dedicated Foam Lake volunteers, wrote “They Came From Many Lands”, a 905 page history book published in 1985. She was very active with the Douglas House, a historical site in Foam Lake, and devotedly participated in the traditional pioneer bread-baking activities there for decades. She also contributed to the compilation of the 1995 book “A Pictorial History of Foam Lake”. Ruth remained active with the Foam Lake Museum as a dedicated volunteer until late in life. She became a member of the Nightingale Rebekah Lodge in Foam Lake, chairing many local and provincial meetings, serving as a Page and Right Herald at conventions, and as District Deputy president. She remained an active member of the Lodge until it was wound down. As her daughter Karen figure skated in the 1970’s and 80’s, Ruth attended clinics to become certified with the Canadian Figure Skating Association as a judge. For years, she travelled to many rinks in Saskatchewan fulfilling this role. In 1987, she received a Volunteer Recognition Award by Saskatchewan’s Department of Culture and Recreation, in 1997 was named Foam Lake’s Chamber of Commerce “Volunteer of the Year”, and in 2005 she received a Saskatchewan Centennial Arts and Culture Award, presented by the Lieutenant Governor. If all of the above weren’t enough to keep Ruth busy, she found time to bake, embroider, knit and crochet. She loved reading, compiling great collections of books, magazines and newspapers. Her yard, was filled with large gardens annually, yielding produce that she faithfully preserved each fall for family members. In winter, snowflakes were never out of place, shovelled quickly by her to keep sidewalks and the driveway clear. She ensured that her “Grand Canyon Pink” house never faded, painting it herself until late in life. To the chagrin of family and neighbors, she was often seen up on ladders, cleaning out the eavetroughs and ensuring that the roof’s shingles were in good condition! It was Ruth’s mission to maintain close contact with relatives. Before there was an internet or Facebook, she wrote letters, sent Christmas and birthday greetings, and made phone calls to stay connected. She held true to this, always acknowledging significant events, and attending those that she could with Bill and their 3 children. Ruth stayed in close contact withher sisters, their families, and overseas relatives in England, South Africa and Australia right to the end of her life. In 1983, Ruth experienced a lifetime dream, travelling to England with daughter Karen to visit relatives and visit where her parents originated. Ruth and Bill became grandparents for the first time in 1993 with the birth of Bob’s daughter Jillian. In 1996, Karen added a grandson Thomas, and in 1999, another granddaughter, Emily. Bob’s son Mitchell was the fourth and final grandchild, born in 2003. Ruth created enormous collections of photos of her family and 4 grandchildren, always noting years, ages and names on the back, to preserve history. She and Bill were married for 52 years. Ruth cared for him at home in his declining health with Alzheimer’s Disease for many years. Bill passed away in 2004, and Ruth continued to live at home. As she aged she was able to remain at her home due to the family’s grateful support she received from neighbours and friends in Foam Lake along with her son Adair, whose frequent trips home helpied her manage daily chores and yard maintenance until 2016 at age 92 when she became a resident of Foam Lake’s Jubilee Home. There she received wonderful care from the caring staff at the nursing home until her passing. Ruth Gushulak passed away in the Jubilee Home in Foam Lake on August 25, 2017. She is survived by her three children (all in Saskatoon): Adair, Bob (Cheryl) and their children Jillian and Mitchell, and Karen (Brian) Conway and their children Thomas and Emily; her two sisters Jean MacLellan of Camrose, AB., and Marjorie Jarvis of Saskatoon; sister-in-law Florence Kessler of Regina, SK; and their extended families.