Ruth Ann Vail

Ruth Ann (Myers) Vail, 90, passed away peacefully on January 23, 2024 in  Arvada, Colorado. She was born on June 17th, 1933 in Brooklyn, NY to Lester James Myers and Inez Ruth (Boyle) Myers.  

Ruth grew up in western New York.  She graduated from Medina High School in 1951 and went on to Buffalo State Teachers College. 

In the summer of 1954 Ruth met Al Vail when they were both invited to a stock car race by Al’s neighbors, who were Ruth’s aunt and uncle. Ruth and Al fell in love and were married on July 3rd, 1955 in Millville, NY. Ruth and Al immediately went west to Sun Valley, Idaho, where Al had been working in the ski industry for several years. The following spring, their son Michael was born. The following year, the family moved to Denver Colorado where their sons James and Richard were born. They moved to the then new suburb of Northglenn in 1962 where their son Thomas was born. They raised their boys in the same Northglenn home where they lived for almost 60 years.

For several years Ruth was a stay at home housewife, homemaker, and mother.  When her children were a little older she started her career as an elementary school teacher. She taught 2^nd to 5^th grade for 23 years in the Adams 12 school district before retiring in 1993.  For one of those years she did a teacher exchange where she spent a year teaching in Adelaide Australia. From her profession as a teacher she was an active member of the Alpha Delta Kappa honorary educational sorority as well as the national and local Education Associations.      

A couple of years after retirement when the new Denver International Airport (DIA) opened, Ruth volunteered with the Travelers Information Program for many years. She helped many travelers get the information they needed or directions on where to go in this new big airport.

Ruth and Al both loved to travel.   First by car or ‘camp mobile’ with their four boys, crisscrossing Colorado and then the United States, camping most of the way.   Many trips were taken between their home state of New York and Colorado. On one of those summer trips, Ruth and Al left their boys with the grandparents in NY and they went on to Europe. In the year Ruth was in Australia, Al joined her for 3 months, and they traveled parts of Australia and New Zealand. In her lifetime, Ruth traveled to all 50 states and all 7 continents, with the last continent being Antarctica. 

Ruth and Al were charter members of the Northglenn United Methodist Church. Over those many years Ruth was a Yellow Rose Circle Leader and a Memorial and Gift Committee chairperson. Ruth served on the 50^th anniversary committee for the church, and felt honored to help compile the 50^th anniversary book. She was also a member of the Kaleidoscope Circle, Genealogy Group, and Yadah Yadah Book Club.

Ruth enjoyed and was active with her hiking group and participated in Aquacise classes at the local recreation center. She was also an active member of the Red Hat ladies group. She followed a passion to write books for children, although her work was never published.  

Ruth was preceded in death by her loving husband, Alfred Dean Vail (2017), and her sons, James Andrew Vail (1974) and Thomas David Vail (2023), and sister Linda (2000). Ruth is survived by her sons Michael (JoAnn) Vail, Richard (Carolyn) Vail. Her daughter in-law Nancy (Thomas) Vail. Six grandchildren, Christopher Vail, Jennifer Vail, Ryan (Jenny) Vail, Melissa Vail, and Nancy’s children Vaughn, and Kristen.  Her great grandchild Eric Vail. Her brother Robert, her sister in-law Virginia, and many nieces and nephews.  

A Memorial service will be held at 1pm on Saturday February 17th, 2024 at Northglenn United Methodist Church, 1605 W 106th Ave. Northglenn, CO 80234. Following the service, friends and family are invited to stay for a light reception.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a memorial donation to one of the following in Ruth Vail’s name:

Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado
 455 Sherman Street, Suite 500
 Denver, CO 80203

or online at https://www.alz.org/co/donate

ADK – Alpha Omicron Chapter Scholarship 

8664 E 148^th Circle

Thornton, CO 80602

Northglenn United Methodist Church

1605 W 106th Ave

Northglenn, CO 80234