Ruth (Ellen) Olson Apps

Ruth (Ellen) Olson Apps Ruth (Ellen) Olson Apps, age 87 of Madison, peacefully passed away at home after a long illness.

In a family of writers and artists, from photographers to musicians and actors, we struggle to find a way to truly summarize all that was Ruthie Apps. Three words stand out: Family, friends, and faith. Maybe, the closest to capturing her life is: Et godt levd liv – Norwegian for “A life well lived”.

Born in Westby to Otto Olson and Ella Lundgren Olson. Ruth was the youngest of five children (Pearl, Clarence, Burton and Jean). She grew up on the family farm and attended South Natwick one-room country school. Ruth was active in 4-H, was an accomplished seamstress and cook and was named the Vernon County Dairy Queen. Ruth graduated from Westby High School and then the University of Wisconsin–Stout with a degree in Home Economics. While working as a County Home Economist for UW Extension in Waushara County, she met Jerry Apps. They married on May 20, 1961.

Together, over the next 63 years, they built a family that became the primary source of their pride. After living in Green Bay, they settled in Madison, where they watched their family grow from their three children – Susie (Paul Bodilly), Steve (Natasha Kassulke) and Jeff (Sandy) – to their seven grandchildren: Josh Horman (Krysta McLaughlin), Ben Horman (Alyssa), Christian Apps, Nick Apps, Elizabeth “Libby” Apps, Shanna Bodilly (Pat Albersman), and Joel Bodilly, and three great grandsons (Tyler, Grant, and Calvin).

Ruth was a long-time member of Midvale Lutheran Church and Gudrid, a Norwegian reading circle. She was very proud of her rural and Scandinavian heritage and traditions. Ruth made sure family life events, such as births and weddings, were memorialized on plates adorned in rosemaling.

Ruth was a homemaker at heart and was well known for her zucchini breads, pies, jams, soups, and more. She also loved a party and when hosting, insisted on waving celebratory napkins and singing loudly at every birthday and anniversary. But her favorite memories, as evidenced by hundreds of photos that covered the walls in nearly every room at home, included taking the family to Walt Disney World for her 70th birthday. She loved spending one week every summer with the family at a Wisconsin lake, cooking and eating together, and playing card games such as Smear and cribbage. She planned many family reunions and picnics. Ruth loved traveling and with Jerry took seven cruises.


Ruth made life-long, trusted friends from college, work and church. She looked forward to catching up with her friends at her monthly lunch club. She also was a member of Daughters of Demeter, wives of professors in the UW–Madison School of Agriculture and Life Sciences. She had fond memories of hosting Jerry’s graduate students from UW–Madison in their home.

Ruthie loved Wisconsin sports, chocolate in any form, and a vanilla shake from Culver’s. She was a voracious reader and loved mystery novels. Ruth founded a book club at Renaissance Senior Living because she felt everyone should read and discuss books.

Since 1966, Ruth and Jerry, owned a farm, Roshara, in the Town of Rose in Waushara County near Jerry’s family homestead. There, they enjoyed decades of introducing their family to the whispers, shadows and wildlife of the country, hiking and storytelling, wood chopping and roaring fires in the kitchen woodstove, reading, restoring the prairie and woodlots, along with tending to – and eating fresh produce from a large garden.

Ruth loved all holidays and decorated the entire house. There were Scandinavian gnomes for all seasons. At Christmas, though, Ruth was at her creative best and redid the entire house with a full lighted Christmas village, a collection of Santas, snowmen, angels, teddy bears, Norwegian art, embroidery, and her childhood nativity. At the centerpiece of it all was a tree cut at the family farm. The tree was covered in ornaments from her travels and matchbooks that Ruth decorated with tiny replicas of covers of more than 50 books by Jerry, Susie and Steve. Inside the matchbooks are details of the year’s events that Ruth wrote on small paper scrolls and each year, would carefully unwind and read as the family decorated the tree.

After Jerry retired emeritus professor from UW–Madison and became a full-time writer, Ruth was extremely proud of Jerry’s “second career” and happily worked by his side as his first-line editor and business manager. She had no problem giving Jerry a thumbs up – and, when she needed to – even a thumbs down on a manuscript. Ruth loved meeting people at libraries and luncheons, and traveling for Jerry’s speaking and teaching engagements to places like The Clearing in Door County.

Ruth is survived by her husband and partner in just about everything, their children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, a large extended family, along with many, many friends.

On Wednesday, December 18, 2024, visitation was held at 10 a.m. with a funeral to follow at 11 a.m. at Midvale Lutheran Church, 4329 Tokay Boulevard, Madison, WI 53711. A lunch was served after the service in the church basement.

In lieu of flowers, memorials should be sent to Midvale Lutheran Church, 4329 Tokay Boulevard, Madison, WI 53711.

The family thanks Agrace and especially nurse Ben and is truly grateful to the Renaissance Senior Living staff for their kindness and care, especially Jamison, Pastor Jim, George, Gracie, and the many more “angels” she came to call family there from the staff to her friends. Ruth appreciated her connection to Midvale Church, especially Pastor Kate, Pastor Blake, and Pastor Ken.

Ruth made friends wherever she lived. Her superpower was bringing people together. Et godt levd li, indeed.

Please share your memories of Ruth by posting in her Guestbook at: www.CressFuneralService.com.
Cress Funeral Services 3610 Speedway Road, Madison (608) 238-3434