Ruby Ann (nee Snapp) Hill passed away peacefully and beautifully into the arms of Jesus, surrounded by her family, on September 11, 2026. Ruby was born September 5, 1942, in Carlisle, Kentucky and was immediately adopted after birth by Emmett and Mary Snapp. She was their only child.
Ruby spent the first ten years of her life in Cincinnati, Ohio and then moved to Deming, New Mexico. She graduated from Deming High School in 1960 and then attended a business school in El Paso, Texas for a short time.
In 1962, Ruby attended a friend’s family reunion in Bayard, New Mexico where she met Darrell Hill. They knew each other for two weeks and, before Darrell headed back to his home in Seward, Alaska, he promised to send her a plane ticket to come to Alaska to marry him. Ruby got on a plane for the first time in her life and, when she arrived in Seattle, she promptly called Darrell and told him she was going to take a bus back home. Darrell promised her that, if she would only fly the remaining 3 1/2 hours, he would never make her fly again. (He kept that promise for 25 years until she consented to fly to Hawaii for their anniversary.) Ruby and Darrell married at the Seward Church of Christ on November 17, 1962.
Ruby was a first-rate homemaker who excelled in serving her husband and three children. She would have a meal on the table every night when her husband came home from work, complete with a main dish, a side dish, and a dessert…and always sweet, iced tea.
Ruby was a true servant who loved people through decades of selfless acts of service. She invited new people from church to their home for meals, she took elderly and disadvantaged people to doctor’s appointments and helped them buy food and clothes. She also volunteered at several nonprofits in Anchorage. Ruby hosted huge holiday meals at their home on the Anchorage Hillside where many friends and family would gather for fellowship.
Ruby’s talent for hospitality turned into Bonnie’s Bed and Breakfast at their home for 12 years. Ruby cooked sourdough pancakes and served breakfast while Darrell told Alaska hunting and fishing stories to their guests. They made many lifelong friends from Bed and Breakfast during those years.
Ruby had a sign on her dresser that read “The greatest gift you can give your kids is your time” and she lived by that…even when her kids were grown, they could still call and she would listen, lovingly, to every word they said.
Ruby had a dry sense of humor and often had witty quips and comebacks that made everyone chuckle.
Ruby was a successful matchmaker at heart and wanted everyone to have the same best friend and romantic relationship that she had with her own husband. Even days before her passing she picked out a nurse at the hospital for her son.
Ruby loved playing cards and board games with her family and friends. She was competitive! Everyone would joke about “Ruby’s Rules” and how, if she won the game, she’d be happy and gloat, but if she lost, she was a bit of a poor loser. She was also an only child so it made sense, and we would just let her have her moment.
None of the above would have been possible without Ruby’s love for the Lord. Everything she did was “because…Jesus.” Ruby loved church potlucks and always made a lot of food just in case there wasn’t enough. She will be missed by all who knew her and our memories will be cherished and shared for years to come.
Ruby leaves behind her husband of 63 years, Darrell Ray Hill; daughter Audra Marie Killgore (husband Ken Killgore) of Wasilla, Alaska and their children Kyler Killgore, Christian Killgore, and Lindsay (nee Killgore) Hill; her son, Austin Howard Hill of Fairbanks, Alaska; and daughter, Bonnie Jean (nee Hill) Voves (husband Harry Voves) of Worley, Idaho and Bonnie’s children Robert Cameron III and Cheyenne Cameron, and six great-grandchildren.
Flowers can be delivered to her service which will be held at the Silver City Church of Christ at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 19, 2026. Potluck to follow. Donation checks can be sent to LCCASC Inc., an after-school program of which Ruby was so proud, at the Silver City Church of Christ, P.O. Box 169, Silver City, NM 88061.
Arrangements are with Terrazas Funeral Chapels and Crematory “Trusted care for the ones you love” ~ 575-537-0777. To send condolences, visit www.terrazasfuneralchapel.com.
