Ruth Landauer

Ruth Landauer peacefully passed away at Houston Hospice, where she had enriched countless others, on Friday, July 19, 2024, surrounded by her family and with her favorite music, Pavarotti, playing. Ruth was born in New York City on September 29, 1939, and died from Alzheimer’s disease. Her life was one of love, laughter, and unwavering kindness. Ruth was especially grateful for the 67 years she had with her husband, Bob Landauer, supporting each other as a team through all the easy and difficult times after they met as teenagers. She will be fondly remembered for her warm, wise, and inclusive leadership at the Houston Hospice where she touched the lives of thousands of volunteers, patients, and families. After volunteering in 1984, she became the Director of Volunteers and for 30 years she improved end-of-life care, trained volunteers, educated as a sought-after speaker on hospice care, and made many lifelong friends. Her work was recognized by the Texas/ New Mexico Hospice organization in 2002 as “The Volunteer Coordinator of the Year” and the Texas partnership for end-of-life care in 2003. After grammar school in New York City, Ruth graduated third in her class (just behind her twin sister Renee!) at Hewlett High School in Long Island and was awarded a scholarship to Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. After Smith, she graduated Magna Cum Laude from Queens College with an MS in Education, also earning scholastic membership in Phi Beta Kappa. In 1961, after she graduated, Bob was discharged from the United States Army, and they married. Last Christmas Eve, they celebrated 62 years of a wonderful marriage. They traveled to China, Japan, Russia, the Caribbean islands, Hawaii, France, Germany, and many other countries. Ruth taught sixth grade in Valley Stream, Long Island and was the founding Chairman of a nursery school and kindergarten in Westbury Long Island. Ruth, Bob, their daughter, Caryn, and their son, Ken, moved from Greenwich, Connecticut to Houston, Texas in 1979. Ruth contributed to the world in many ways. She served several significant non-profit organizations as a board member, she gardened, was an early recycler, and was an avid reader, often bringing a dozen books home to read at one time. She tutored struggling students, taught English to Vietnamese refugees under the auspices of Catholic Charities, and edited newsletters for her children’s schools before directing volunteers at the Houston Hospice. She navigated life with a great sense of humor, though some say Bob drew it out of her. Ruth also expressed herself through painting, and she formed a creative partnership with her daughter, named Landauer Art. Her abstract art can be found on the walls of the Chevron Tower and in a number of hospitals, banks, homes, and office buildings in Houston. Ruth was a very humble person and very few people knew of her non-Hospice achievements. She was a member of the Houston Racquet Club and Westwood Golf Club and enjoyed playing tennis, golf and bridge and watching her husband, Bob, play collegiate baseball. Ruth loved baseball since watching the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1940’s playing in Ebbets Field (before they moved and became the Los Angeles Dodgers). Ruth and Bob avidly kept up with the successes of our beloved Houston Astros and were season ticket holders for over 40 years of the Houston Oilers and Houston Texans. Ruth also enjoyed the Houston Grand Opera and the Houston Ballet. Ruth is survived by husband, Robert Landauer, daughter, Caryn Landauer, son, Kenneth Landauer, and his wife, Julianne Swartz, and their daughter, Alma Landauer. Ruth was preceded in death by her father, Roy Cantor, her mother, Evelyn Zwick, and her identical twin, Renee Rubin. A memorial service was held on Sunday, August 25, 2024, at the Houston Racquet Club. To view the livestream, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuUASMygxlI. Ruth’s family has requested that memorial contributions be made to “Houston Hospice, in honor of Ruth Landauer,” www.houstonhospice.org, to the local chapter of The Alzheimer’s Association, http://act.alz.org/goto/Landauer, or to a charity of your choice.

Ruth Landauer

September 29, 1939 - July 19, 2024