John was born on February 3, 1910 in Broken Bow, Nebraska. Ruby McArthur was
born on August 12, 1911 in Burdett, Kansas. John and Ruby were married on
June 20, 1934 in Lincoln, Nebraska and resided in Lincoln the remainder of
their
lives.
Following graduation from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 1934
John became a prominent attorney in Lancaster County until his retirement
in 1982.
Besides being known for his cases he tried he also earned a reputation for
providing representation of persons who lacked financial resources to hire
an attorney
on their own prior to the institution of a public defender system in Lancaster
County in the 1960’s. John passed away in September, 1986.
After graduation from the Lincoln General Hospital School of Nursing in 1932
Ruby worked as a private duty nurse until her marriage to John in 1934. Although
not engaged in the practice of nursing after her marriage she continued to
keep busy in the nursing profession and related fields for the remainder of
her life.
She held a number of offices in local and state nursing organizations and did
legislative lobbying work for the Nebraska Nurses Association both on the state
and federal levels and assisted in the passage of important nursing legislation
in the 1950’s and early 1960’s.
Ruby was also active in other civic endeavors in Lancaster County especially
as a member of the board of the Lancaster County Workshop, the principal county
organization for indigent families and individuals of Lancaster County. The responsibilities
of this organization were eventually transferred to the present Good Neighbor
Community Center.
At the same time Ruby also was actively involved with the local Red Cross Chapter
and became its nursing services director. In the early 60’s she responded
to a request by the national Red Cross to become an organizer of nursing services
at various national disaster such as Hurricanes Camille and Betsy, the tornadoes
in Ohio, Kentucky, Nebraska and Texas and floods in Minnesota and South Dakota.
She continued that work until her retirement in the 1970’s.
Because of her extensive community work she was nominated and chosen to be
the Nebraska Mother of the Year in 1976 and continued her work with the Nebraska
Mother’s Committee until shortly before her death in 1993.
This memorial is made oh behalf of her six children, Suzanne, Frank, John, James,
Linda and Benjamin, and their grandchildren.
