Ruby Amoth Seaman

My dear wife, and our cherished mother and “Granny,” Ruby Amoth Seaman was born in Langdon, North Dakota, to Albert and Margaret Toews Amoth, on June 20, 1940, the youngest of five children.

In November of 1941, the family moved to beautiful Bonners Ferry, Idaho. They soon settled near Copeland in an old log house accessed by ferry or, in winter, across the frozen Kootenai River. Here mom and her siblings spent an idyllic childhood, playing and swimming in the river. Precious memories included quiet evenings with her dad in the rowboat, checking sturgeon lines. Grandpa read many Bible stories aloud, and his deep faith was a guiding star in her life.

She attended the small Copeland school, the new Mt. Hall school, and two and a half years of high school. Mom first met her Savior when she was twelve and was baptized into the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite, but in her teen years left her God and her Church, living as she pleased. She soon caught the eye of a young man from the community, and married our dad, Richard Seaman, on June 20, 1959.

Mom was astonished at dad’s lack of biblical knowledge and related to him her new birth experience. Winter brought revival meetings which mom and dad attended, though she had no intention of returning. To her everlasting wonder a gentle sermon on the reasonableness of God turned her wayward heart around, and that night she and dad both stood during an invitation. Following this choice, dad was baptized, and mom was reaccepted on January 3, 1960. To complete this miracle, dad’s twin brother Howard joined them in this life-changing decision. Mom followed Jesus steadfastly the rest of her days.

Tamara was born a year later and, following a move to California, Marla and Kirk completed the family. Wonderful memories were made with friends in California, but they returned to Bonners Ferry in 1966 to a rent house near Curt and Iva Dirks where mom often told of the blessed sound of nothing but wind in the trees. After moving thirteen times in nine years, they purchased a small home plot abounding with maple, fir, and pine trees. Here dad labored lovingly to fulfill mom’s dream, building the “Little Brown House,” where she remained the queen all her life. To the family, there was no more enchanting place to return to, with kettles of soup, fresh buns and cookies, many books, and much laughter. Always the scent of coffee lingered in the air…mom’s various friends spent many hours having long heart to heart talks there.

Mom had three outstanding gifts of loving well, listening well, and finding humor wherever she went. Her laughter we will remember always, and her accepting way of delighting in the people she met, just as they were. She was creative person who loved to sing old songs, also reading countless books to the family. She published a humorous and poignant cookbook and wrote many poems, articles, and letters throughout her life.

While folks lived frugally, we are rich in memories of high mountain hikes, swimming at Kootenay Lake, bike rides, wiener roasts, and even a few trips to the Pacific Coast. In their hearts was a secret wanderlust and twice they threw caution to the winds and flew to Europe where they traveled by Eurail, eating at fresh markets and sidewalk cafes and passing out Gospel Tracts to gypsies and fellow travelers. They also traveled to the Philippines to visit friends, where they learned to love the people and beautiful islands. These trips filled their golden years with a treasure store of memories.

In her last years, our mother’s world narrowed as she suffered much arthritic pain which wearied her days and long nights. After a surgery which we hoped would relieve this pain, we began to realize God had a different plan, and she turned her eyes toward another country, and a home more precious than the one she was leaving behind. She took an early morning flight to Jesus on August 21, 2025, leaving us with full but bleeding hearts. We think of her laughter, joy and wonder there, and we cannot wish her back. We trust her prayers will follow us, and we’ll meet again someday in a beautiful new home.

Her survivors include her husband, Richard; children Tamara and Dwight Koehn; Marla Seaman, all of El Campo, Texas; Kirk and Karen of Bonners Ferry, Idaho; seven grandchildren; thirteen great grandchildren; sister Betty Hoffstetter; brother Victor and Nancy Amoth; sister-in-law Neoma Amoth; and brother-in-law Howard Seaman. She was preceded in death by her parents; parents-in-law, one brother; one sister; six brothers-in-law, four sisters-in-law, and one granddaughter.

Funeral Services were held on August 27, 2025 at Mountain View Mennonite Church, Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Ministers Shane Ensz, Ben Nystrom, and Glenn Ensz officiated. Burial was in the church cemetery.