In Taunton, May 28, 2015, Ruth M. Lester died at Morton Hospital following a brief illness, she was 102 years old. Ruth was the wife of the late Lieutenant Colonel Alec H. Lester, and the daughter of the late William J. and Alice (Marley) Ward. Born and educated in Taunton she was a communicant of St. Ann’s Church in Raynham. Mrs. Lester graduated from the Union Hospital of Nursing and was a Major during World War II in the Army Air Corps as an Evacuation Nurse in the western pacific area of operations. She logged more than 1200 hours of flight time, most of which were in forward areas. She was a resident of the Arbors in Taunton and lived for many years in Bonita Springs, FL. She was the sister of the late John J. Ward, Gertrude Delaney, William J. Ward and Alice Smith. She is also survived by her nieces Kathleen Pacheco and her husband Wayne and Linda DeAngelis. Her nephews, Michael Delaney, C. Richard Ward, James Ward, William Ward and the late John Ward, and many grand nieces and nephews. She is also survived by a cousin Patricia Currivan of Canton. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday, June 1st at 11 am. at St. Ann’s Church in Raynham. Visiting hours are respectfully omitted. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Taunton. Donations in Ruth’s memory may be made to the Women’s War Memorial in Washington DC, Service for America Memorial Foundation, Dept. 560, Washington, DC 20042-0560 or at Womensmemorial.org