Dr. Robert Bridge, Mrs. Roberta Bridge Bush, and Mr. Stuart Bush

Ruth Edna (Zappa) Bridge of Midland, Michigan, was born in 1928, to Thomas and Althea Zappa in S.E. Minneapolis, MN, the eldest of five children. Though she worked during high school towards college expenses, had it not been for the generosity of others, she might not have graduated with her RN from Northwestern Hospital School of Nursing in Minneapolis. There Ruth met the love of her life, Robert Glen Bridge, M.D., and they married in 1949. She practiced nursing additionally in Rochester, NY, and briefly in Midland. They soon began their family of six children.

Devoting herself to family, friends and helping others, Ruth was involved in everything from church and schools to scouts, to creating special scholarships, and helping families and individuals in need, always standing up for those whose voices often went unheard or undervalued. She shared her resources, heart and soul, passing forward the blessings she treasured during her own life.

In 1982, Saginaw Valley State University bestowed an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Humanities to Ruth, acknowledging her decades of dedication to increase scholarship opportunities and reaching out to the people of the local communities on behalf of the University. She volunteered in the campus gift shop, helped to establish the Triskelions organization, (serving as an early president) and their Consignment Shop.

Despite multiple serious health problems, she lived graciously to the age of 80, with the loving care and attention of her husband of 60 years and family. After Ruth Bridge passed away in 2009, this scholarship was established by family members to honor her positive outlook on life in a manner consistent with her work and values. Deep warm generosity and a strong sense of justice were among her outstanding characteristics.