Ruth McBurney

Ruth “Auntie Ruth” (Hernvall) McBurney, 90, passed away Sunday evening, June 26, 2016, at Bonner General Hospital in Sandpoint, Idaho. Funeral services will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 2, 2016, at Coffelt's Funeral Chapel, 109 N. Division St., Sandpoint, Idaho. Friends are invited to call at Coffelt’s Funeral Service on Friday, July 1, 2016, from 4-6 p.m. Ruth was born on March 26, 1926 in St. Marie’s, Idaho. Her family moved to Priest Lake at the age of 2 and she attended grade school in a one-room school house. After a tragic house fire, the family moved to Ponderay and Ruth attended Bonner County schools, graduating as valedictorian of Sandpoint High in 1943. Even as a child she was a hard worker. She loved being in the woods, cutting trees (using a cross-cut saw), and selling firewood. She milked cows, tended gardens, loved to read, and even loved to study! Immediately after high school she began working as a court reporter and stenographer for Bonner County. After a whirlwind courtship, she married William T. McBurney on May 28, 1953. She began working as a legal secretary for Raymond Greene and continued working for the legal firm of Greene and Hunt for nearly 50 years. Ruth, Ray Green, and Jim Hunt were more than “business partners” but became life-long friends. In 1972 Ruth and Bill began investing in real estate contracts, a business that Ruth has continued to manage for 44 years. Ruth loved to have fun. She loved her family. She loved life. Her hobbies and interests were many. She enjoyed her cabin at Priest Lake, her lovely home and garden in Sandpoint, fishing, hunting, mountain climbing, razor clamming, and travel. She harvested a once-in-a-lifetime moose at the age of 78, climbed Mt. Ruthann at the age 80, and very recently celebrated her 90th birthday with her family and friends. She was an avid reader throughout her life, reading as many as three books a week right up until the time of her death. She is survived by her sister Nina Kotschevar of Sandpoint, and numerous nieces and nephews, including Kris (Jack) Collison of Portland, Kathy (Randy) James of Sandpoint, Patty (David) Hurford of Creston, Don (Gizelle) Kotschevar of Mullan, Ron (Mary) Hernvall of Fort Mohave, Arizona, Larry (Geri) Hernvall of Rathdrum, Jack (Cindy) Hernvall of Portland, and Steven Wells of Norfolk, Virginia. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Bill, and her brother Robert Hernvall.