Ruth Margolies, beloved wife of the late Rabbi Morris B. Margolies, died on Dec. 11 at age 98.
Ruth met her husband on a blind date in Brooklyn, New York, in November of 1951, and, following a whirlwind courtship, they married in February of 1952. Her husband wanted to delay the marriage because he was about to ship off to Korea as an Army chaplain, but she wouldn’t hear of it. They wed just before he headed off into the thick of the Korean conflict. He returned nine months later for the birth of their first child, and she remained his helpmate for the next 61 years, through the birth of two more children and synagogue posts in Brooklyn and then Kansas City.
Ruth Smith was born in Brooklyn on January 28, 1926, the second of four children – two girls and two boys. Her father, Sidney Smith, was a tailor who emigrated from Poland during the First World War. Her mother, Helen (née Rosenblitt), also an immigrant from Poland, arrived in the U.S. soon afterward.
Ruth worked in midtown Manhattan as a model for hats and high-end costume jewelry before meeting her husband-to-be.
Her brief courtship provided little preparation for the life of a “rebbetzin” that would follow, but she grew into the role, an indispensable factotum to her husband as he fulfilled the demanding duties of his congregations, first at Temple Beth El in Brooklyn and then, beginning in 1961, Congregation Beth Shalom in Kansas City.
Ruth loved to socialize and relished entertaining guests in her home, particularly during Jewish holidays. She enjoyed nothing more than showing guests her husband’s vast Jewish library, the books of which she regularly availed herself to further what, at the outset of her marriage, had been a rudimentary Jewish education.
She loved classical music, good fiction and traveling on cruises with her husband. She was a fine cook and enjoyed experimenting with new recipes, especially soups. She had a surprisingly bawdy sense of humor and would surprise visitors with snappy one-liners, as she did just a few weeks ago, when she observed her eldest son with a woman she didn’t recognize. “Where’d you pick up the blond?” she queried.
A devotee of Yiddishkeit – Yiddish was the language spoken in her home growing up – she was intent on teaching basic Yiddish to whomever came to visit her at Village Shalom, including the non-Jewish chaplain. She and her husband used to confer in Yiddish if they wanted to keep some important secret away from their children’s prying ears. Regrettably, that meant that while their children grew up proficient in Hebrew, they never picked up on Yiddish.
Ruth was active in various Jewish organizations, including the Beth Shalom Sisterhood, Hadassah and Women’s League.
She was preceded in death by her husband, the longtime senior rabbi of Congregation Beth Shalom, who died in November of 2012. She is survived by her three children, Daniel Margolies (Deborah), Jonathan Margolies and Malka Margolies (Walter); six grandchildren, Rachel Goldberg (Ari), Max Margolies (Brittany), Micah Margolies (Gabrielle), Jacob Margolies, Shoshana Margolies and Gavriel Scott; and seven great-grandchildren, Leora Goldberg, Ezra Goldberg, Adina Goldberg, Hillel Goldberg, Jonah Margolies, Ruby Margolies and Elijah Margolies.
She also leaves behind many nieces and nephews, among whom particular gratitude is due to Shari Sokol, who regularly visited her at Village Shalom and lifted her spirits, and to Shari’s husband, Dr. Michael Sokol, who was attentive to her health needs.
The family wishes to thank the wonderful caregivers at Village Shalom, to which Ruth and her husband moved in 2011 after it was no longer feasible for them to live in their Leawood home of 43 years. After Ruth broke her hip eight years ago, she moved to the skilled nursing facility at Village Shalom, where the loving ministrations of its skilled staff, particularly Chasity, Rhonda and Jaci, brought her physical relief and contentment. Thanks are also due to the wonderful caregivers of Monarch Hospice, who tended to her in the last weeks of her life.
The funeral service took place in the Yukon Chapel at Mt. Carmel Cemetery on Dec. 13.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that contributions in Ruth’s memory be made to Village Shalom, Congregation Beth Shalom or Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy. Online condolences for the family may be left at louismemorialchapel.com.
