Ruth Marie McCabe

Ruth Marie McCabe passed from this life into the next early in the evening of May 24th, 2023.

Born on November 3, 1965 to Mildred (Nussbaumer) and Jerome “Jerry” McCabe, she was the second of three children. A lifelong resident of Watsonville, she attended Moreland Notre Dame School and Watsonville High School (where she was valedictorian of the graduating class of 1983) before beginning her studies at the University of Portland where she received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. Upon her return to Watsonville, she began working at Watsonville Community Hospital where she remained employed for just over three decades, almost entirely in the Critical Care unit.

Ruth was a horsewoman from her grade school days when she participated in 4-H as well as competing in local open horse shows. For the remainder of her life, she enjoyed pleasure trail rides, horse camps, and all things related to owning and loving horses. Over the years, she made many friends and shared countless memorable experiences with other like-minded people. Ultimately, she found her “tribe” and her “happy place” at City Limits Ranch where she boarded her horse. Every moment that she spent there was precious to her as she relished being in her idea of heaven on earth where a myriad of animals and people combined with the outdoors to recharge and feed her mind and her soul.

Ruth took quiet pride in her nursing career and the knowledge that she had made a difference in other people’s lives. By most, if not all accounts, she was a very skilled nurse and clinician who balanced critical thinking with compassion and patient advocacy in order to provide her patients with the very best care possible. As is the case with most in the caregiving profession, nursing was not just a job or a series of tasks to be completed. It was her calling and her life’s work. When she was no longer able to continue with hands-on patient care, Ruth found meaningful employment with Central California Alliance for Health where she could continue to utilize her knowledge and skills as a nurse to advocate on behalf of patients.

While there is no possible way to quantify the number of lives she touched, her passing has left an immediate and unfillable hole in the hearts of her family and friends. Ruth made lasting impressions as well as friendships, and she was loyal and loving and true if she was anything at all. She is predeceased by her father and leaves behind her mother, her sister Kathy, and her brother John (all of Watsonville).

A rosary will be said at 10:30am on Wednesday, June 7th at Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic Church with requiem mass to follow at 11am. Interment will be private and will take place at a later date. Ave Maria Memorial Chapel has been entrusted with final arrangements.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that donations in Ruth’s name be made to City Limits Ranch, Inc (a 501c3 non-profit) so that the good work being done there can continue. To learn more about City Limits, please visit their website at https://citylimitsranchequestrian.webs.com