 1918 - 2011 (92 years)
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| Name |
Ruby Irene Brand |
| Birth |
25 Apr 1918 |
Cherokee, Georgia, USA  [1] |
| Gender |
Female |
| Name |
Ruby E Wilkes [1] |
| Residence |
1991 |
Oakland, Orange, Florida, USA [1] |
| Death |
22 Apr 2011 |
Orange, Florida, USA |
- WILKES, RUBY IRENE, was the daughter of Nelle Long and William "Guy" Brand.
She was born among the hills of Cherokee County, GA, on April 25, 1918, in a clapboard farmhouse at the end of a red clay lane. Her best childhood memories, she would say, were of following her grandpa as he plowed, and of fragrant, barefoot summers and full-moon harvests and fireplace winters. She attended a one-room grammar school, graduated from Marietta High School, in Marietta, GA, and attended the University of Georgia, Athens. Ruby loved to dance -- the big-band two-step and jitterbug of the WWII years, the rock-and-roll of the 1950s, a hot cha-cha in Cuba, and, in the 1990s, a hip-shaking macarena in Mexico. On her 80th birthday, she partnered with Epcot tribal dancers for 30 minutes before running out of breath. The dance of her life, though, happened at the world premier and grand ball of Gone with the Wind. As the then daughter-in-law of Georgia's governor, she was a member of the host family. Breath-taking in a rose satin gown, she was startled to find herself staring into the eyes of Clark Gable, as he kissed her hand and led her onto the ballroom floor for a waltz. In the mid-1930s, her mother bought a small grove on Johns Lake, in West Orange County, FL and settled. When her own circumstances changed, Ruby moved too, and spent most of the war years in Florida. In 1946, she met Wilson B. "Flicker" Wilkes, a highly-decorated US Air Force pilot. They married in the Rollins College Chapel, in Winter Park, FL and moved to Adel, GA, his hometown, where they resided until 1966. During those years Ruby was a homemaker, her long-time friend, Josephine Woods, working alongside her, preparing noon-time soul food and more of it for supper. In the yard, Otis Woods worked with her, shoulder to shoulder. Marriage to a man who, for most of their time together, was either in the House of Representatives or State Senate, meant that she became an extraordinary party-giver -- a talent she enjoyed for a lifetime. She was widowed in 1968, while living in Atlanta, where they had moved for "Flicker" to accept the position of State Budget Director. Following his death, she returned to her late mother's Central Florida home. Ruby loved nature. For years she dominated Orange County's best fishing holes, and could smell brim on the bed for a half-mile. When, in 1960, her mother died suddenly, she found solace in birding and once travelled to New England to glimpse, for three minutes, a rare specie to top her birder's list.
Locally, she was a long-time member of Bloom & Grow, a service organization responsible for Habitat for Humanity landscaping, Winter Garden's Path of Life, scholarships and myriad other projects. Although she travelled extensively, her favorite place on earth was any warm ocean with a stretch of white-sand beach littered with seashells, and of all of those that she collected, she loved best the perfection of the tiniest.
Known for her artistry and creativity, Ruby beautified everything she touched, whether the sanctuary of the Windermere Baptist Church or a holiday table or her own patch of earth. In the last decade of her life, designing and planting butterfly gardens brought her total contentment. However, deep into her 60s, until medically unadvised, Ruby still loved a frosty margarita, a good smoke, and wearing hot pants with high boots. Her southern drawl could be as jaw-droppingly salty as it was magnolia sweet. She was doted upon by family and close friends -- Vada Vines would check on her at any hour and share meals; Allen Vines worked her grounds side-by-side with her and took his marching orders with affection and humor, rarely leaving her bedside her last week of life; Vera Carter never said no to a need, Sally Turner was a devoted employee for nearly 30 years. Her beloved family honored her as an undisputed matriarch and loved her unconditionally. At 87, she climbed the Great Wall of China; at 90, she swam with sting rays and, as a yellow-dog Democrat, was a tireless Obama volunteer; at 92, she received a speeding citation, kept her own house and yard, loved internet Scrabble and would shop 'til she dropped, literally.
She departed this earth in the evening of April 22, 2011, three days before her 93rd birthday. Although Ruby recently lost Bitsy, her long-time canine companion, Blackie, the luckiest stray dog on the planet, still lies on the hot cement of her back deck where he appeared years ago, and where they warmed their arthritic bones together. Chin on his paws, he peers through the sliding glass door, waiting for her, but now spends his nights with Vada and Allen who honor his bereavement.
Preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her infant son E. D. Rivers, III; and "sister-cousins" Dorothy Tallent and Mildred Kile, she is survived by her daughter, Dee Rivers-Yowell; four grandchildren - Mark Musser, Jeff Musser, Jim Boatman and Melissa B. Linebaugh; eight great-grandchildren and three great-great grandchildren. Ruby -- a most desirable gem of durability, luster and rarity.
Memorials in her name may be made to The Carter Center, 453 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30307 or The Florida Baptist Children's Home in Lakeland, 1015 Sikes Blvd., Lakeland, FL 33815.
Published in the Orlando Sentinel on May 15, 2011
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| Person ID |
I27004 |
tng Genealogy |
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| Event Map |
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 | Death - 22 Apr 2011 - Orange, Florida, USA |
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| Sources |
- [S396] Ancestry.com, U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2010;), Database online.
Record for Ruby E Wilkes
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