Services for June Clinton Rutt, 92, of Golden, Colorado, formerly of Des Moines, Iowa will be held at 11:00 a.m on Saturday, November 7th, at Grace United Methodist Church, 3700 Cottage Grove Ave. in Des Moines, Iowa. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service with the family inviting all friends to a luncheon to follow. Private family burial will be at a later date at Grandview Cemetery in Fayette, Iowa. She was released from the loving embrace of her family to return to her home in heaven on October 12, 2015.
June Clinton Rutt, the daughter of Dr. John D. and Lillian Clinton was born on June 26, 1923 at the Methodist Episcopal parsonage in Waverly, Iowa. Her early years were spent in Fayette, Iowa where her father was the Methodist pastor and her mother led the choirs and played the organ. She graduated in 1941 from Iowa Falls High School and attended Cornell College like her father and mother before her, graduating in 1945 with a degree in Public School Music. She taught at Ida Grove High School. Her love for music education lead her to share that joy with students in many schools throughout Iowa over the years. It was during these early years in Ida Grove that she met her future husband's father, the Rev. R.J. Rutt, the Presbyterian pastor at the local cafe, where she sometimes ate her meals.
June was married to Charles Raymond Rutt on May 28, 1948 at the Little Chapel of First United Methodist Church in Des Moines, Iowa by her father, father-in-law and Uncle Clarence Moore. June and C. Raymond ,who were both music educators, raised their family in Dallas Center, Guernsey, Kellogg, Newton, Grand Junction, and Fayette. The family enjoyed camping with friends in their trailer and traveling as much as possible. C. Raymond Rutt died in 1970 and June raised her family and taught elementary music at Turkey Valley Community Schools in Jackson Junction, Iowa. June moved with her family to Des Moines, Iowa in 1976 when her father moved into a retirement community and June and her family moved into his house. June worked in the loan office at Drake University for 16 years.
Family, music and faith were very important to June as she sang in many church choirs, played the piano for vacation bible school and directed the Grace Chimers at Grace United Methodist Church for many years. June enjoyed playing her cello, "Elmer" in the Des Moines Community Orchestra as well as singing in the Des Moines Choral Society and enjoyed the PEO sisterhood. She volunteered at the Iowa Methodist Medical Center, the Polk County Heritage Gallery, the office at her church as well as setting up the greeters at her church for many years. She enjoyed going to the Des Moines Symphony concerts and the Saturday Farmers Market in downtown Des Moines.
June moved into Wesley Acres in 2005 and made many good friends from her 4th floor apartment. She headed west to move in with her daughter, Sue in Golden, Colorado in 2012. She always insisted that she liked Colorado but it wasn't Iowa! She enjoyed staying in touch with family and friends by email on her iPad and was known to send more than a few "bits of wisdom" on the Internet. June enjoyed spending time with her children, grandchildren and caregivers in Colorado very much. She also liked to do the jumble, word finds, puzzles as well as embroidery. Holiday gatherings were a special time for her as she enjoyed going to area cultural events, favorite family foods and playing games with usually the rules 'bent' just a bit to help her or her grandchildren win.
She is preceded in death by her husband, C. Raymond Rutt, infant daughters, Barbara Ann and Mary Beth Rutt, father and mother, Dr. John D. and Lillian Clinton; sister and brother-in-law, Lois and Jack Fischthal, brother, Dewitt C. Clinton; and father-in-law and mother-in-law, Raymond J. and Lois C. Rutt.
June is survived by her daughter, Sue Armstrong, of Golden, Colorado; sons, John Rutt, of Des Moines; David (Dawn) Rutt, of Forest City; and Tom (Tierny) Rutt of Spencer; grandchildren Laura (Andy) Jordan, of Ames, Iowa; Danielle (Keith) Doolittle, of Lakewood, Colorado; Leighanna Rutt of Denver, Colorado; Eric Rutt of Spencer; Pat (Sarah) Armstrong of Alhambra, California and Sarah Rutt of Spencer, as well as many other nieces, nephews, and many, many friends.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the music and bell fund at Grace United Methodist Church, 3700 Cottage Grove. Des Moines, IA 50311 or Honor Hospice Charitable Fund, 4251 Kipling St., Wheat Ridge, CO 80033.
All-States Cremation of Wheat Ridge, Colorado is in charge of arrangements with the assistance of the Becker-Milnes Funeral Home of Fayette.
