Ruth Neville Obituary

Ruth Shaw Neville, 87, beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away on Monday, October 6, 2025.



Born in Providence, Rhode Island to Frederick Cook Shaw and Mary Lillian (Lamson) Shaw, and raised primarily in Barrington, Ruth lived a life fiercely devoted to family. Ruth graduated from Barrington High School, Class of 1956, and matriculated at the University of Rhode Island, where she met the love of her life, Hugh Neville, in her freshman year. They married in 1957, and remained soulmates for 58 years. Ruth and Hugh raised their three children in Barrington in a house on Lamson Road, a street named for her mother's family. In 2000 they designed and built their dream home at the end of the road on Hundred Acre Cove, where they lived until Hugh's death in 2016.



Ruth was an expert skier, sailor and tennis player, master gardener, accomplished seamstress, consummate hostess, and skilled artisan craftswoman. Ruth was a longtime member of the Barrington Yacht Club, the Rhode Island Country Club, and the Handicraft Club of Providence, RI. At the Handicraft Club she learned the art of Nantucket Lightship Basket weaving, ultimately coaching a group of friends who affectionately became known as the Basket Ladies.



Known to her grandchildren as Ru-Ru, she was happiest with them and her children: at the beach, on the Bay, at the Cove, skiing the slopes of Waterville Valley, NH, on the sidelines of their games, or in the auditoriums where they performed.



Ruth is survived by her son, Hugh "Skip" Neville of Bristol, RI, daughters, Pamela Neville (Paul Bowser) of Barrington and Wendy (Leo) Kraunelis of Salem, MA, grandchildren Lilli, Conant, Katie, Jay, Dee and AnnaLeigh, and great-granddaughter Ella. She was preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Janet Gregan, and her husband.



A Celebration of Life will be held on Thursday, October 16, 2025 at 2:00 PM at the Barrington Yacht Club, 25 Barton Avenue, Barrington. Burial will be private.