Ruth Stevens Atkins

Ruth Stevens Atkins, with amazing grace, joined her late husband Kenneth Atkins on March 7th, 2021, her favorite Granddaughter holding her hand. We always thought it was Ken taking care of Ruth, but Ruth was taking care of Ken. They were never apart in life. Ruth was always in control, never seeming to feel pain. It was the pain of losing Ken that willed her to join him.

A graveside service is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. on Saturday March 13th at Overlook Cemetery, Eden, NC and is to be officiated by Pastor Kyle Goodman. She will lie in repose at Fair Funeral Home on Friday, March 12th from 12:00-6:00 p.m. and the public is welcome to come by to pay their respects.  The graveside service will be live-streamed on the Facebook page of Fair Funeral Home for those unable to attend. All are welcome to safely celebrate Ruth's life.

The family would like to thank the many wonderful caregivers for their care and dedication. 

Ruth was preceded in death by her loving husband, Kenneth Atkins, her parents, John and Daisy Stevens, brothers Timotheus and John Henry Stevens, and sisters Kitty Hubbard and Bunny Dyer.

She leaves behind her daughter Pamlyn Atkins, son-in-law, Russell Karasik (Pam’s husband), two beautiful grandchildren Jesse Atkins Karasik and Reed Atkins Karasik, Jesse’s wife Sally Karasik and their three great grandchildren, Estelle, Georgia, and Teddy.

Ruth was born in Stokes Co., NC May 8, 1923 to John H. Stevens of Stokes Co. and Daisy Lee Stovall Stevens of Surry Co., NC. She graduated from Leaksville High School and worked as a color set designer in Fieldcrest Mills, illustrating exceptional design skill that she would later apply to sewing her family’s clothes and to designing the interior of her homes in Eden, NC, Palm Springs, CA and Big Fork, MT.  Growing up on Hill Street with no running water and sharing a bed with four siblings, she was determined to have a better life and she made that happen. She and Ken married February 1, 1947. Their relationship has now gone down in history as a 74 year love affair, like that of country music writers and romantic novelists. Ruth became a devoted and pampering Mother to Pam and later a Bookkeeper in their business, Kenneth E. Atkins, CPA. Upon Ken’s retirement, Ruth and Ken crisscrossed Mexico, Canada and the US in their Prevost Coach, the best decision Ken and Ruth ever made. Their adventures brought them into contact with the bright and the famous; creating intense friendships that remain.  Ruth was glamorous. Crowned Cotton Queen, she turned heads wherever she went.  She was the life of the party, spreading her Southern charm, always reaching out to the other person to hug their neck, drawing them in. She respected daring fashion and never wore an outfit that was not beautifully polished. She was the personification of elegance. Ruth’s beautiful skin and figure was by no accident. She exercised vigorously on a daily basis and ate organic starting in the 1960’s.  Until two years ago she could bend over straight- legged to touch her toes, palms on the floor. Her pace was brisk and her smile infectious.

Ruth has passed from this earth to be with Ken. They wrote their love story with a perfect ending.

Online condolences may be offered to the family at www.fairfuneralhome.com