Born: February 8th, 1953 - A Gift From Heaven

Oct. 11th, 2025 - Numbered Amongst A Great Cloud of Witnesses

Life Story

Mother Sister Ruthy Mae Seymore was born on February 8, 1953, in Webb, Mississippi, to Mr. Enoch Berry and Mrs. Lena Mae Berry (Magic). Ruthy was a proud child of The Great Migration from the South to the North. Both of her parents were sharecroppers from Money, Mississippi, and her father and grandparents were born during the time of slavery in the state of Mississippi, United States of America.

Ruthy was a retired Licensed Practical Nurse. She earned her nursing degree in 1986 from St. Paul Technical College after retiring from Control Data in St. Paul, where she worked as a coding keypunch operator. After more than 30 years of nursing, Ruthy retired in 2016 and, with the help of her children, started her own nursing staffing service. She worked at nearly every nursing home in the St. Paul and Minneapolis metropolitan area.

Ruthy was also a seamstress for over 50 years. With the help of her children, she designed and created fashion for entire wedding parties and made and mended wardrobes for women, men, and children. She will forever be known as "Minnesota's Finest Seamstress." Ruthy loved arts and crafts, needlepoint, crocheting, and reupholstering furniture from the Victorian era.

From 1986 to 2019, Ruthy was a major pillar in Minnesota's Church of God in Christ (COGIC)-the oldest African American Pentecostal denomination in the United States. She was a longstanding member of Free at Last Church of God in Christ under Pastor Joseph and Andrea Webb, serving faithfully in every capacity: choir member, usher, missionary, nurse, and later, as a Church Mother.

In the 1990s, "Sister Ruth" drew standing-room-only crowds when she hosted special guest preachers such as Bishop Willie Campbell and her sister, Evangelist Missionary Samella McGee. A true powerhouse for Christ, Sister Ruthy attracted thousands to the service of the Lord in Minnesota.

She later served at United Church of God in Christ in St. Paul, Minnesota, under Pastor Celester and Felicia Webb, where she ministered as a Missionary for the Sick and Shut-In Committee and as a personal volunteer hospice nurse.

Triumph Over Illness

In 2015, Ruthy was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. By 2017, through prayer, dedicated doctors, surgery, chemotherapy, rehabilitation, and the steadfast love of her family, she became a cancer survivor.

Even in her health challenges, Ruthy remained well-traveled and steadfast in her faith. She continued her work as a National Missionary for God's people while cherishing every moment with her family.

By February 21, 2016, she was visiting Lion Country Safari in West Palm Beach, Florida, with her granddaughter and great-granddaughter. In June 2016, before undergoing surgery, she attended the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) in Las Vegas as an honorary member, checking off her bucket list visits to Siegfried & Roy's White Tigers and Dolphin Habitat. That same summer, she toured the North and South Rims of the Grand Canyon.

In the summer of 2017, Ruthy was declared healed and cancer-free. By August 2, 2017, she was back in Las Vegas, Nevada, celebrating with the City of Las Vegas and the Mayor for her 25 years of nonprofit service through Life Changing Outreach Programs and Services. Through her family's Job Seeking Assistance Program, she helped 600 Las Vegas residents obtain employment, adding over $360,000 to the city's economy, and provided suicide prevention awareness and support.

Later Years

In 2019, life brought Ruthy back into the care of her oldest son as she was diagnosed with early-stage dementia. Even then, she remained devoted to the Lord. Returning to the West in the Red Rocks of Sedona Arizona.

In Arizona, she joined Journey Church of the Pentecostal Assemblies of God (COGIC Sister Church) under Pastor Jeremy, serving as an Honorary Church Mother and later volunteered with New Hope Christian Fellowship Food Pantry Ministry.

In 2020, Ruthy entered long-term memory care after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. From 2020 to 2025, her granddaughter Lena Mae Seymore was her rock and the family's steady anchor. Alongside her parents, Christopher and Michelle Seymore, Lena ensured Ruthy was surrounded by constant love and dignity in her final years.

On October 11, 2025, at sundown, Mother Sister Ruthy Mae Seymore went home to be with the Lord and joined the Great Cloud of Witnesses, who now proclaim her as one of our late, great ancestors.

Family and Legacy

Affectionately known as "T.T.," Ruthy was the youngest of seven children. She is preceded in death by her brother Howard Martin Sr. (Big Howard) and sisters Johnny Mae McDonald and Emma Jean Martin.

She is survived by her brother Enoch Berry II ("Sonny Boy," age 74); sisters Samella McGee Alfred (age 78) and Sara Regell (age 92); and her youngest adopted brother, Lil Howard Martin.

Ruthy Mae Seymore was a true pillar of her community, a champion for the people she served, and a devoted mother to her beloved children.

Through her union with Lovell Seymore, three children were born: Christopher Lovell ("Bad Eye Slim") Seymore, Marko Anthony Dane Seymore-her loving "knee baby" and the only one allowed to call her "Ruthy Mae," and Tamara Lashay ("Lil Ms. Mae") Seymore-Taylor.

Ruthy was the proud grandmother of nine grandchildren and great-grandmother of eight great-grandchildren.

Grandchildren

Children of Christopher Seymore:
• Trey'Vonne and Patricia Williams-Seymore - Trey'Vonne Jr. (14), Jayden (11), Aviana (5)
• Mikya Irby and Anthony Irby - Dylan (13), Jordyn (4), Landyn (2)
• Berlin Mae Seymore (under 1 year)

Children of Marko Seymore:
• Grandson: Marko Anthony Seymore
• Granddaughters: Jordyn Aniya Mae ("Jordy Mae") Seymore and Shia Daiana Seymore

Children of Tamara Lashay and Darryl Leon Taylor:
• Granddaughter: Asia Arianna Taylor
• Grandson: Darryl Leon Taylor Jr.

A Life of Service and Love

Mother Sister Ruthy Mae Seymore lived a life marked by faith, service, creativity, resilience, and love. She was a healer in body, mind, and spirit-a nurse, a missionary, a mother, and a maker of beauty. Her legacy of compassion, craftsmanship, and care will live on through her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and all those whose lives she touched.