Bobby Ruth Powell's Obituary
Bobby Ruth Powell, 84, of Gainesville, Florida, passed away on September 20, 2023. Bobby was predeceased by her mother Ruth Fraser Powell, her father Zebulon Vance Powell, her brother John Vance, and her nephew C. Link Powell. She leaves behind her daughter Lisa Soto, her son Paul Soto, two granddaughters, Carmen and Maya Soto, her brother’s children Robin, Pascal, and Shannon, and many cousins.
Bobby attended elementary and middle school in Melrose and Gainesville and graduated from Gainesville High School. While attending and working at the University of Florida, she met Pablo Soto. They married in 1965, moved to Baton Rouge, LA, and then Allentown, PA, where Lisa was born. Next, they went to Raleigh, NC, where Pablo completed his Ph.D. in entomology and then to Hyderabad, India, where Bobby fell in love with traveling. Paul was born in Florida during a visit back to Gainesville. After Bobby contracted the travel bug in India, the family moved to Nigeria, where Paul contracted the malaria bug. After a brief stint in Melrose, FL, they all moved to La Lima, Honduras in 1980.
Bobby returned to Gainesville in 1986, after the end of her marriage to Pablo, and returned to the University of Florida to complete her bachelor's degree in Anthropology. She went on to a school in Tallahassee that shall not be named to earn her master’s degree in library science in 1991. Upon returning to Gainesville, she procured her dream job as a reference librarian at the Alachua County Library, going on to become the genealogy librarian. She retired in 2012. Bobby also served as a member of the National Genealogy Society, the Alachua County Historical Commission, and Historic Melrose. She took her love of Gainesville, its history, and the Gators everywhere she went. She will be very much missed.
A memorial service is planned for Sunday November 19th at 2:00 PM at the Eliam Cemetery in Melrose, Florida. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Friends of the Library (folacld.org) or the Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org) in Bobby’s name.
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