Honoring LW Centenarians-Ruth Beamon
This is one story in an occasional series profiling some of LW’s most long-lived residents, those who have reached the enviable age of 100 years or more. The series is running in connection with the Golden Age Foundation centenarian event held April 20. In most cases, a family member or friend has written the stories.
by Lita Fernando
LW contributor
Ruth Elaine Scrivner was born in Kuna, Idaho, on Feb. 6, 1921, one of the seven children born to William Troy and Alice Elvida Scrivner. She had one older brother and three older sisters. She also had twin younger sisters.
The family moved to Long Beach when Ruth was very young. They first lived in tents at the beach until her father could find a place to stay.
Eventually, they settled into a home on Pine Avenue. Ruth remembers walking to the beach with her sisters to spend the day. This was before the breakwater, and “the waves were as big as a house.” It was during this time that Ruth’s mother was diagnosed with serious illness.
Shortly after moving to California, the Scrivner clan became members of the First Christian Church of Long Beach, where they remained members for many years. The church quickly became a source of fellowship where Ruth spent much of her time with the family and made many friends.
One afternoon on a nice March day in 1933, the Scrivers world changed again. An earthquake, magnitude 6.4, struck, and the epicenter was not far from Ruth’s home. The foundation of the house fell. There was no electricity, and it was cold. They slept at a camp near the beach for several days and cooked outside with the wind blowing. A radio broadcast warned of a coming tsunami, so the whole family moved to a higher hillside. With all the prayers, the tsunami didn’t materialize.
After Ruth graduated from Long Beach Polytechnic High School, she was introduced by a family friend to Kenneth A. Beaman during a church function. They were married in 1941. After a few years, Kenneth was drafted and stationed at the Presidio in San Francisco. While living in Sausalito, Ruth had her first GI baby girl, Sandra Lee, on Dec. 2, 1944.
Ruth has great memories of standing on the Golden Gate Bridge welcoming soldiers home from World War II. The Beaman family ultimately settled in Long Beach, buying a home not far from the Long Beach Traffic Circle. They stayed there until their second child Robert was born on Dec. 14, 1951. Kenneth worked for the City of Long Beach, and Ruth worked in several jobs while her mother-in-law, Lydia, watched the kids.
It was not easy, but the family strived to enjoy quality time together, going to church, beaches, national parks and sports events, plus playing games, camping and socializing.
As the years went by, the kids grew up and finished school, starting lives of their own. Ken retired, and Ruth started working at an insurance company. She was an active member and president of Insurance Women of Long Beach. In 1982, they came to Leisure World, buying an apartment in Mutual 6.
In Ruth’s words, they were blessed to have a safe place in Leisure World. They joined several clubs, and traveled throughout the U.S. and to many countries.
Ruth is very creative in painting, ceramics, needlework and flower gardening. She arranged flowers for First Christian Church of Leisure World and assisted in many church functions.
After Ken passed away in 2004, Ruth devoted herself to the Lord by going to church and Bible classes, enjoying life to the fullest.
Ruth has three grandchildren, two step-grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. Daughter Sandra became the managing librarian at the Valley Center Library. She passed away in 2012.
“God is good all the time,” says Ruth, who thanks the Golden Age Foundation and the Golden Rain Foundation “from the bottom of my heart for your gifts and love to me.”
