Ruby Richardson peacefully passed away on February 9, 2025, at the age of 91 with her daughter Winsome by her side. She was born on January 29, 1934, in Hibernia, Jamaica, located in the parish of Manchester, to her mother, Lillian Brooks.
Ruby was adopted by Clement and Louise Miller and attended Bethany All-Age School. While in Jamaica, she gave birth to five children before briefly migrating to Canada and then to the United States in 1965. She often traveled back to Jamaica, where she met the love of her life, Gladstone Richardson. The couple wed on January 4, 1969.
Ruby lived a fulfilling life as a wife, mother, grandmother, housekeeper, home health aide, and friend to many. She was known for being an avid walker, a bargain shopper, and for her infamous summer cookouts at 153 Catherine Street.
She was an extremely hard worker and excelled at saving money. She served as the banker for a community savings account Jamaicans referred to as a “Pawdna.” Ruby was dedicated to her hustle, cleaning 4-5 houses per day, along with part-time night jobs to support her family.
Ruby was a cheerful giver; she found great joy in packing barrels to send goods to the less fortunate in Jamaica. She often opened her home to those who migrated from Jamaica until they found their way in America.
She retired and returned to Jamaica in 2005, where she thoroughly enjoyed gardening, tending to her chickens, and loving her dogs. She attended Emmanuel Missionary Church in Mandeville, Jamaica, hardly ever missing a Sunday. Those who loved her cherished her contagious laughter, admiration of the Lord, and her incredibly kind spirit. In 2017, she returned to America as old age began to set in and her health started to decline.
Before her passing, she was able to celebrate one last birthday, singing “Happy Birthday” to herself alongside her family in celebration.
She is survived by her siblings, Hazel Dwyer and Margaret Brooks (Jay); six children, Constance Telfer, Hubert “Natty” White, Coreen Riley, Winsome Dunn, and Elaine McKenzie; stepdaughter, Elaine “Peaches” Richardson; 14 grandchildren; a host of great and great-great-grandchildren; as well as many nieces and nephews, whom she loved dearly. She is predeceased by her husband, Gladstone Richardson; brothers Selvin Brooks and George “Slim” Brooks; and sister Agnes Brooks.
Walk good, Ruby. You will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved you.
