Ruth Anna Bunting went to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Christmas morning at home just short of her 96 ^th birthday.   Born Ruth Anna Emery on 2/9/1923, she was the eighth of 10 girls born to the late Catharine (Gray) and Walter Emery.   She was the last surviving sibling.She was born and raised on a dairy farm located in the center of the quiet farming village of Chesterfield, NJ.  She married Charles Meirs Bunting II of Crosswicks, NJ, the son of the late Mildred Elizabeth (Borden) and Howard Taylor Bunting, Sr. a local dairy farmer located on the outskirts of Crosswicks, NJ.   Early in their marriage, Ruth and Charles resided in the village of Ellisdale, NJ.   In 1965, they moved to the Bunting farm.   Ruth remained a Crosswicks resident until she passed away on Dec. 25 ^th .

Ruth attended the tiny two room school house located at the edge of the family farm in Chesterfield until she graduated from 6 ^th grade.   She transferred to middle school in Crosswicks where she met and attended classes with Charles.   She attended high school in Bordentown and was present the day that the school caught fire.   Ruth was not fond of school, but art was her favorite subject, and she was known to draw sketches while she talked on the phone.

Despite growing up during the Great Depression, Ruth reported, "We had the good life.  We kids did not realize that there was a depression.  There on the farm you had everything you needed."  Ruth reminisced with family:  Christmas was a time with close family, asking for what you wanted and getting what was best for you.  Oranges were a very special Christmas treat.  As a teenager, Ruth delivered milk in the early hours before school with her mother and eldest sister, Naomi Emery.   She was always on the run, jumping over obstacles to finish in time for school.   Attending Pine Brook Christian youth camp in the Poconos with girlfriends was a fond memory.

The only heartache that she shared was the day that the family farm caught fire.   Returning home from a visit, she spotted the billowing smoke rising from the farm.   All the horses were lost along with the barns and out buildings.  The cows were eventually sold, and the family's independent bottling and milk distribution to the area were ended.  The old homestead remains adjacent to the present park.

In 1966 her children attended the new Chesterfield Elementary School which was built on the family farm.  The newest school stands in neighboring Crosswicks on her late husband's grandfather's farm. At one time, much of the area belonged to and was farmed by Bunting and Emery families. An animal lover since childhood, it saddened her greatly to see the family farms vanish and replaced by construction leaving the animals no place to go or live.

Ruth pointed to WW II as the most significant event in her life, except for Charles' passing. It took women out of the home forever changing the dynamics of the American family forever. After graduation in 1942, with Charles off to war, Ruth worked at General Motors in Trenton, NJ, building planes for aircraft carriers. Trained as a riveter, once she reached the factory floor, she was transferred to hydraulics inside the aircraft wings due to her petite size.   Ruth and Charles married after the war and raised their children in the same little white church she had grown up in, the Chesterfield Baptist Church. Charles went home to be with the Lord on March 27, 2010.

Ruth led a simple life.  Family, home, her husband and children remained the focus of her life.   Life revolved around faith, family and life on the farm.   When asked to share a special occasion, Ruth stated the the birth of "a baby was an important time" in her life.  Her advice to others.  "Always be honest, respect others… (and be) thoughtful of others."   Ruth noted her greatest accomplishment as having 5 healthy children and working with Mercer Street Friends for 35 years, retiring at 89.  Ruth described her life as "just an ordinary country life…a farm life."   While the rest of the world was "running around and doing all the time, that was not my kind of life."

Rest in peace, Mom!

Ruth was predeceased by her husband, Charles Meirs Bunting II; son-in-law, William R. Baggott III, a grandson, Steven M. Crist, and a great grandson, Gavin Wallace.  Ruth is survived by:  three daughters and two son-in-laws, Patricia J. and Dick Crist of Perrysville, IN, Marilyn R. and Robert Fishman of Ellisdale, NJ, Mildred L. Bunting (Baggott) of Hampton, VA; two sons and one daughter-in-law, Charles M. Bunting III and friend, Michele Garcia of Crosswicks, NJ, and David T. Bunting and Linda Neff of Southhampton, NJ; 11 grandchildren, Sharon Epling, Sarah Wallace and Lois Randle; Timothy, Benjamin, Jonathan and Daniel Trought; Wendy Goy; Cameron, Caitlin, and Charles M. Bunting IV; 12 great-grandchildren, Alexander and Rebecca Stephens; Anna Goy; Colby, Noelle, Eli and Noah Epling; Zoe Wallace; James and Lacey Trought; Angus Trought; Freya Trought;  brother-in-law, Howard T. Bunting, Jr. of Crosswicks, NJ; two sisters-in-law, Louise Bunting of Bordentown, and Joyce Elliott and husband, Harold of Yardville; as well as many nieces and nephews.   Special thanks and appreciation go to her caregiver and friend, Sherry Lewis.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Mercer Street Friends, 151 Mercer Street, Trenton, NJ   08611; Friends in Jesus Learning Center, 1062 Big Bethel Rd., Hampton, VA  23666 or First Baptist Christian School, 1211 N. Vermilion St., Danville, IL 61832.

Service will be held at 10 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 31, at the Peppler Funeral Home, 114 South Main St, Allentown, NJ.   Interment will follow in North Crosswicks Cemetery, Hamilton. Friends may call Sunday, Dec. 30 ^th from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the funeral home in Allentown.