Ruth Arlene Lawless-Brown

Ruth Arlene Lawless-Brown 1926-2022 Arlene passed away on November 28, 2022 after a long, creative, exciting and beautiful life. She was born in 1926 in Marion, Ohio to Forrest and Sarah Hill, the first of six children. An exceptional student she graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in Psychology and a certificate as one of the first Dental Hygienists in the state. During the war she worked in a war plant making electrical harnesses for B29’s. At OSU she met David Lawless. They married and lived in Akron, Ohio and had three children. Arlene worked as a Dental Hygienist for more than 20 years. After Dave retired from Firestone, they moved to Port St. Lucie and enjoyed golfing and travel. Dave passed away in 1994 and Arlene joined a writer’s group and ended up publishing three books. The last one, "Around the World with Aunt Inez", was published when she was 95. While returning to Ohio for her 60th class reunion, Arlene met an old boyfriend, George Brown, who proposed the same weekend, and they were married in 2005. They lived in Marion, Ohio until George passed away in 2010. Arlene then moved to Miami to be near her son Woody. She was very active in the Coral Gables Methodist Church and loved to entertain and travel. After the sudden death of her son, Arlene moved to Gainesville and began a new life at The Villages. She continued writing, and developed several standup comedy routines, including a hilarious one as the worlds oldest airline stewardess. Her five grandsons were the love of her life and she took all of them to Europe and on several cruises. Arlene was always positive despite the losses in her life and ordered new tap shoes when she was 90 and wrote a musical at 95. Arlene was predeceased by her three children, Linda Campbell, Ruth Richards, and Woody Lawless and one brother, James Hill. She is survived by her five grandson, Ryan Butler, Dan Campbell, Rory Campbell, Keith Richards and Kyle Richards, two great-grandsons, Warren Richards and Fin Campbell, and sons-in-law, Jim Richards and Bob Campbell. She is also survived by her four siblings, Marvin Hill, Paul Hill, Sue Tennant, and Sally Buck. A memorial service will be held later in Ohio. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Arlene’s memory may be made to the American Cancer Society.