Ruth Eleanor Cooney

Ruth Eleanor Cooney, 101 years old, at Spanish Fork, UT, died on May 30, 2015.

Born on September 23, 1913 in New York City to Antonia Francen and Joseph Weins.  Ruth married John Bligh and had a son John Richard Bligh, and was widowed when her husband died in a train accident.   Ruth married William Phillip Cooney in 1946 and had a son Daniel Cooney in 1949.  She is preceded in death by William in 1995.

Ruth was a ballet and ballroom dance teacher in New York City in the 1930’s, taught by and working for Arthur Murray.  She learned secretarial skills at Browne’s Business School and was very proficient at writing in Gregg shorthand while working as a stenographer at Underwood Elliot Fisher Typewriter Company on Park Avenue.   When she was widowed, she took a job as housekeeper at the Cooney Farm in Danville NH.  She soon eloped to Florida with William Cooney where William established Maple Leaf Egg Farm and Hatchery.   They raised sons John and Daniel.  Ruth and William ran their successful business until the 1990’s, and Ruth continued to live on the family farm until 2001 when she moved to California next to her son Daniel.  She resided at and received loving care at Maple Mountain Assisted Living in Mapleton for many years, and recently at Legacy House in Spanish Fork.  Ruth regularly attended and enjoyed Sunday church services at St Mary’s Episcopal Church in Provo.

Ruth is survived by her son Daniel in Springville and her grandson Aaron in Rosamond CA.  She was preceded in death by her husbands John and William, by her siblings Joseph and Katherine (103) and Josephine (105), and by her son John Richard Bligh.

Ruth will have a Memorial service at St Mary’s Episcopal Church, 50 W 200 N in Provo, at 2 pm on Tuesday June 9, 2015, followed by a reception.  Her ashes will be transported to New York for committal at a later date.