Ruth M. Dittes

OBITUARY

Blackstad, Ruth Dittes age 80, of Lakeville. Retired teacher, Richfield Public Schools.

Survived by husband, Charles Blackstad of Lakeville; three daughters, Barbara (Bruce) Fenske of New Ulm, Charlotte (Stephen) Miller of Burnsville, Nancy (Loreck) Seher of Toronto, Ontario, Canada; grandchildren, Eric Fenske of Chicago, Sara Fenske of Mpls, Patrick (Emily) Miller of Shakopee and Chaz (Lynn) Miller of St. Cloud; sisters, Helen Morrison, Mahtomedi and Susan (Ron) DeBrule of Woodbury; nieces & nephew, Jean (John) Trumper, Forest Lake, Carol (MIchael) Redmond, Stillwater, Michael (Susie) DeBrule, Marshall, MN, Nanette DeBrule, Woodbury and Cherie DeBrule, Woodbury; 5 grand-nephews, 1 grand-niece.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Orval Dittes (1985) and Laura Belle Dittes (1998).

Service Thursday, [31 July 2008] 11 AM at Grace Lutheran Church of Apple Valley, 7800 Co Rd 42, Apple Valley.

Interment Lebanon Cemetery.

Visitation Wednesday, 5-8 PM at Morris Nilsen Chapel, 6527 Portland Ave S., Richfield, and one hour prior to service at the church.

Morris Nilsen Chapel 612-869-3226 www.morrisnilsen.com

Published in the Star Tribune on 7/29/2008

WITH GRATITUDE TO MS. DITTES
By Nancy Wigchers

A great memory that I have is a wonderful teacher/mentor who always supported her students and moved them to excellence. That person is Ruth Dittes Blackstad, my high school shorthand and office procedures teacher. To this day, we exchange Christmas cards and letters, and she has been the most faithful mentor and friend a student could ever have. When I graduated from college (at the age of 30) and then law school (at the age of 40), Ms. Dittes sent me her heart-felt congratulations. I was unable to go to college immediately after high school for financial reasons, though I had excellent grades. The teaching and training I received from Ms. Dittes’s classes enabled me to get a good job immediately following high school graduation in a national law firm as a legal secretary, which was the stepping stone for my legal career (legal secretary, then paralegal, then lawyer). Ms. Dittes taught me to do my best, to believe in myself, and to set my sights high. Most importantly, she taught me how to support others and how to encourage them to excellence. For this, I am eternally grateful. In fact, years after graduating from RHS, Ms. Dittes asked me to come back to RHS to speak to some of her classes about how to prepare for life in the business world. I see now that she was calling on me to be supportive of others, as she had been supportive of me. If I can be half as good as Ms. Dittes at bringing out the best in others, I will count my life as a success. Thank you Ms. Dittes Blackstad!
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GREETINGS FROM RUTH DITTES BLACKSTAD TO THE CLASS OF 1972

Teaching at Richfield from 1957-1990 was an interesting and challenging experience for me, as Richfield High was still in its early formative years. Eventually it was the largest high school in the state with classes of over 900 students and a large staff of instructors. I especially enjoyed working with and learning to know my business students in Typing, Shorthand, and Office Procedures. Many of those students went on to obtain really good jobs in the office field, and I have had the opportunity to talk to a number of them about their career experiences and how much they appreciated the background instruction at Richfield High. It is always a pleasure for a teacher to see students succeed and to hear that they really did appreciate the instruction they received. In 1950 I began my teaching career at Milaca High and then accepted a position at Litchfield High where I taught Typing, Shorthand, and Office Procedures from 1953-57. At Richfield, I again taught many of the same business subjects; however, in time I ended up teaching everything on computers, including Keyboarding and Computer Applications. I also wrote an instructional book on Word Processing, which I sold for several years and also used in my classes.

My husband, Charlie, and I retired in 1990 and have spent our time fishing in the summer (two weeks each month) and traveling. We have had trips around the world; around South America; to Scandinavia; to Australia, Fiji, and New Zealand; to Egypt; to India and Nepal; and to Thailand and Malaysia on a four-masted sailing ship. We took a river cruise in October, starting in Budapest and Prague where we got on the River Navigator to cruise up the Danube and Rhine to Amsterdam and Brussels. We have been fortunate to have the health to enjoy these trips.

Best wishes for a successful reunion and greetings to all of you! I look forward to seeing many of you personally.

Sincerely,
Ruth Dittes Blackstad