Ruth Sundback

Ruth Ellen Sundback, 73, died Feb. 27, 2017, at a hospice facility in Staten Island, N.Y., a few months after being diagnosed with glioblastoma.
Ruth, daughter of Carl and Selma Pabst, was born Oct. 25, 1943, in Mondovi, Wis. She graduated from Mondovi High School and the University of Wisconsin in Menomonie. She served a dietetic internship at the U.S. Public Health Service Hospital in Staten Island, and during this time she met her husband, Nelson (Neil) Sundback. They were married Nov. 4, 1967, at Zion Lutheran Church, Mondovi.
Ruth was a registered dietitian at Eger Nursing Home, Bayley Seton and St. Vincent’s Hospitals. She also worked as a consultant to several Staten Island facilities. She developed weight control classes for children and an educational and cooking class for HIV clients.
She was a member of the Zion Lutheran Church and served on Council, the missions and social concerns board, and women’s groups, and cooked for the homeless. She and her husband worked as junior high youth advisors. She served on the board of Zion Lutheran Preschool and camp for 20 years and for several years as president.
Ruth was active in the Staten Island Nutrition Professionals for several years and wrote many articles on nutrition for the Staten Island Advance. She taught classes for children on exercise, nutrition, cooking and growing vegetables.
She enjoyed her garden and was proud that it bloomed all year. She loved painting, crafts, and traveling with her husband and friends. She had a passion for baking and made many wedding and specialty cakes for friends and relatives. She also taught cake decorating in Staten Island.
Ruth and her husband moved to Las Vegas, Nev. in 2002, but returned to Staten Island for the summer and at Christmas to visit her family and spend time with her two granddaughters.
While living in Las Vegas, Ruth volunteered at Summerlin Hospital and wrote two children’s books. She was a member of The Lakes Lutheran Church. She served as outreach chairman and was a member of the Kits Group.
Ruth is survived by her husband, Neil; sons, Christopher (Liz) and Robert; granddaughters, Jenna and Grace of Staten Island and Iselin, N.J.; sisters, Betty Christenberry of Lake Havasu City, Ariz. and Joyce (Jim)Bauer of Eau Claire, Wis.; brother, David Pabst of Pomano Beach, Fla.; brother-in-law, Les Sundback of Staten Island; sister-in-law, Shirley Blyth of McKinney, Texas; nieces, nephew and cousins.
She was preceded in death by her parents; brother-in-law and sister-in-law.
Memorial services were held at Zion Lutheran on March 2 and at The Lakes Lutheran on March 23.