Geneva Ruth (McCall) Noble

Geneva Ruth Noble was born to Jesse D. and Ora (Smith) McCall on December 30, 1918.  She was the 5th of 8 children.  Since she was born during the flu epidemic of 1918, the survival of her mother was the primary concern, so Geneva was put in a shoe box and left on the oven door of the wood cook stove.

Growing up on the family farm SE of Yuma, she spent most of her time with the outside chores.  As a result she had an exceptional garden and bountiful chickens, for frying and selling the eggs.  These skills proved to be a huge advantage in her married life.

She attended school in Yuma and graduated from Yuma Union High School, an accomplishment for her time period.  After graduation she stayed home so her mother could tutor her in housewifery.  She had to learn how to dress those chickens she had been raising.  And boy did she learn how!  Her fried chicken was to die for.

The United Brethren Evangelical Church was the same distance as town so the family chose to attend church there; they thought they had more in common with country folks than city dwellers.  At church she met Merrill Noble whom she married on December 25, 1937.  To this union was born 2 children:  Eva and Lanny.

Married life was tough.  They lived in a 4 room home on land they purchased from her father.  There was no running water or electricity until REA in the mid 50s.  At that point they moved in another house from north of Otis.  Finally, she had a home that had running water and electricity without using batteries for power. 

Geneva was a competitor.  She particularly loved bowling and card games.  When she bowled if she didn’t reach her average it was a bad day.  There was no joy in mudville.  Playing pinochle  she was a tenacious bidder.  If she thought she had a good hand there was no way anyone else could bid.  It was a miracle she could bid so high as all she ever held was 9’s.  She spent hours playing the dice game Greedy with her grandchildren.  The only time she could accept losing but she still didn’t like it. 

After that marriage ended, she moved to Akron where she helped care for her grandson John.  In her later years, she sold her home and moved to Pioneer Haven.  It was there she, her family, and friends celebrated her 90th birthday.  Failing health forced her to move to Washington County Nursing Home where she celebrated her 95th birthday.

Preceding her in death were her parents Jesse D and Ora; her brothers Arthur and Donald McCall; her sisters Eva McCall, Margaret Himes, Dorothy Degner, and Edith Colby, and son-in-law Paul Bruns. 

Surviving her are daughter Eva and son Lanny (Barbara) Noble; grandsons John Bruns, Richard (Jenny) Noble, Ryan (Ronella) Noble; sister Peggy Hansen; 4 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great-grandchild.  She had a tough life but a long, productive life.  Not bad for a shoe box. 

The funeral service took place on Thursday, August 11, 2016 at 10:0-0 a.m. at the Yuma United Methodist Church with Pastor Jaime Nieves officiating.  Interment followed at the Yuma Cemetery in Yuma, Colorado.  Baucke Funeral Home directed the service.