Ruth was born on April 11, 1918, on the family farm near Brooklyn, Iowa to Ernest and Frances Gaumer Breniman. She attended rural school and graduated from Brooklyn High School with the class of 1936. On March 4, 1944, she was married to Delmar M. Adkins in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. The couple operated a grain and livestock farm northeast of Grinnell and in 1960 they moved to her parent's farm southeast of Brooklyn. They moved to Seeland Park in Grinnell in 1995. Ruth was a member of the Grinnell United Methodist Church and the Poweshiek County 4-H. She served as a volunteer for Grinnell Regional Hospice and was presented an award of appreciation for her labor of love and dedication to hospice patients and their families. Her hobbies included quilting, needle work, gardening and traveling throughout the United States and Europe. She took pride in baking pies, breads and making her famous apple jelly. Survivors include her husband, Delmar M. Adkins of Grinnell; her children, Gene (Ann) Adkins of Brooklyn, Lee M. Adkins of Brooklyn and Gayle (Jim) Powell of DeWitt, Iowa; eight grandchildren; and nine great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents; one sister, Mildred P. Belknap; and two brothers, Lester and Forrest Breniman. Memorials may be directed to the Grinnell United Methodist Church Window Fund or to Grinnell Regional Hospice.