Anne B. Ruvane

Anne Beebe Ruvane entered into the arms of the Lord on December 7, 2025, surrounded by all six of her children. Anne had announced just days earlier, that she was ready to join her beloved husband, John, in heaven. For more than ninety years, Anne directed her unwavering faith, her thirst for knowledge, and her dedication to service to enrich the lives of others.

Anne was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on June 7, 1935. Her parents, Alice and Robert Beebe, were both educators and inspired her and her two siblings’ commitment to public education. She graduated from Penn State University, her father’s alma mater, in 1957. She was blessed to meet John Ruvane while waiting tables one summer at Pocono Manor, where John was working as a caddy. She and John were married in 1957 before the ink was dry on his Princeton diploma and went on to give birth to their six children over the course of only seven years. She shepherded the whole mad pack of them to countless wrestling and soccer practices, guitar, voice, dance, violin, piano and flute lessons, and somehow managed to put dinner on the table for the family. Needless to say, music was a central part of family life in the Ruvane home.

After John was enticed to accept a new job opportunity in Santa Barbara, CA, she packed up the kids relocated from Short Hills, NJ to Montecito, CA. When it became clear after a year that John’s California adventure was not working out, she repacked the contents of the house and, at the age of thirty two, took the three oldest in “Bessie,” the family’s station wagon, and drove across the country to Scranton, PA, aided only by a AAA Triptick, her sense of direction, and her mother’s gift of a $100 traveler’s check. En route, they visited several National Parks, had an encounter with a bear, slept in the station wagon, and were welcomed and fed by strangers. Their adventure gave lasting memories to half of her progeny.

After resettling the family in Short Hills, NJ, she and John hit upon camping as an inexpensive way to vacation with six children and the family dog. Anne learned that by freezing a large pot of spaghetti sauce in advance of the trip, she could ensure that other items in the cooler would not perish during the journey. John and Anne and all six kids crammed into a borrowed pop up camper which Bessie towed to Williamsburg, VA, Saint Augustine, FL, Myrtle Beach, SC, and the Outer Banks, NC. John, not being too fond of the sun, begrudgingly gave up his golf and hid under a large umbrella with the dog while Anne and the kids explored the campgrounds and played on the beach, acquiring bad sunburns to bring home as souvenirs.

You’d think six children would be enough, but Anne loved kids. Her early career was focused on teaching youngsters at Christ Church Nursery School in Short Hills, NJ where she and John raised their family. After obtaining her Master’s Degree in Communications Sciences and Disorders from Montclair State College and a Certificate of Clinical Competency to work as a Speech Pathologist at the age of forty, she worked with children with severe learning disabilities at ECLC (Early Childhood Learning Center) of New Jersey. Years later, she worked side by side with John in the pharmaceutical advertising and marketing agency he founded. Her love of language, her knowledge of Latin, and her boundless curiosity were invaluable as an editor of newsletters spanning various medical specialties. Anne was at ease conversing with and questioning physicians from leading academic institutions about emerging medical issues.

With an empty nest, Anne and John sold their NJ home and moved to Central Park West, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Together they enjoyed exploring the city, going to the opera and spending weekends and summers with many of their twelve grandchildren at the family home in Buck Hill Falls, PA. She and John were avid travelers. Anne accompanied John on many European choral tours with the University Glee Club of New York and was blessed to join him and his Princeton Class of 1957 on “mini reunion” trips to Scotland, Wales, Scandinavia and Russia, as well as Taos and Park City. In 1995, their Pocono friends introduced them to Ponte Vedra Beach and Sawgrass Country Club. John was sold on the golf and Anne, the beach. At Sawgrass, she became an active member of the Sawgrass Women’s Club and served as its President from 2001-2002. After John’s death in 2020, she was recruited to succeed him as a member of the Princeton Class of 1957’s Caring Committee where she served for the last six years to provide financial and other assistance to struggling members of John’s class.

Anne and John were devout Roman Catholics and active members of Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church (“OLSS”). They enjoyed singing with the church choir and the Sawgrass Singers, and were both longtime volunteers at Mission House in Jacksonville Beach. Anne was an avid reader, bridge player, and could complete any crossword puzzle in record time -- in ink.

Anne was predeceased by John, who passed away on March 1, 2020, days before COVID-19 locked down the country, and by her beloved brother, Robert (“Bobby”) Beebe. She was welcomed into assisted living at Starling at Ponte Vedra where she was a cherished resident for the last six years. She is survived by her sister, Alice Ruffing (Newton) in addition to her six children and their spouses: Anne Julie (“A.J.”) Ruvane (Wil Reitsma) of Ponte Vedra Beach, Kearney Vrabel (Ron) of Bernardsville, NJ, Molly Kamensky (Michael) of Clearwater, FL, John Austin Ruvane, Jr. (Sharon) of Jersey City, NJ, Alice Ruvane (Steve Mortimer) of Raymond, ME, and Susan D’Avanzo (Rob) of Lakewood Ranch, FL. She and John were blessed with twelve grandchildren, Christopher Ruvane (Xioamin Wu), Anna Vrabel, Andrew Vrabel (Lauren), Brian Kamensky (Alexandra), Alex Vrabel (Ashley), Patrick Ruvane, Joe D’Avanzo, Caleigh Reitsma (Justin McDonald), Ian Reitsma, Katie and Bridget Ruvane, and John D’Avanzo and numerous nieces and nephews. She was looking forward to welcoming two great grandchildren in early 2026.

Anne was truly loved by all who knew her and will be sorely missed by her caregivers at Starling, her countless friends, her “CHIRP sisters” (Christ Renews His Parish) at OLSS and, above all, her children and grandchildren. Wear something blue as Anne loved the color which accentuated her beautiful blue eyes and radiant smile.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 17, 2026 at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. In lieu of flowers, donations to St. Vincent de Paul, Mission House, BEAM (Beaches Emergency Assistance Ministry) and Community Hospice of North Florida would be greatly appreciated.