Ruth Bento

Ruth E. Bento, 99, of Tiverton, Rhode Island, died on June 6, 2026. She was the wife of the late Joseph F. Bento, Jr. Born in Tiverton on August 2, 1926, she was the daughter of Antone and Catherine (Fernandes) Jerome. She grew up on Sugarloaf Farm on Highland Road in Tiverton, one of nine children.

Ruth was a proud graduate of the former Sacred Heart Academy in Fall River, MA and continued her education with training as a Lab Technician. As a young woman she worked at St. Joseph's Hospital in Providence and the Truesdale Clinic in Fall River. She and her husband Joseph were lifelong members of St. Christopher's Church in Tiverton. Ruth volunteered many hours at the church, as both a CCD teacher and as a former chairwoman for the Social Justice and Peace Committee. She was also a founding volunteer of the Tiverton Meals on Wheels program, supporting the older residents in her community. In her free time, she was a talented baker, especially during Christmas when her cookies would be shared with many, or seasonally making jams and jellies, even trying her hand at making maple syrup.

Ruth is survived by four sons, Jerome Bento (Linda) of Hudson, NH, James Bento (Ann) of Silver Lake, NH, Michael Bento(Vaughn Brown) of Washington, DC, and Joseph Bento, III,(Melissa) of Tiverton, and one surviving sibling, her sister Katherine Dennis of Noblesville, IN. Ruth is survived by eight grandchildren, Jeremy, Alicia, Danielle, Jay, Kerri, Kyle, Kurtis, and Katherine; as well as ten great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

Ruth is preceded in death by husband, Joseph Bento, Jr. and her siblings, John Jerome, Joseph Jerome, Paul Jerome, Francis Jerome, Edward Jerome, Rita Morris, and Mary Jerome.

Visiting hours will be held on Thursday, June 11, 2026, from 4:00-7:00 pm in the Connors Funeral Home, 55 West Main Road, Portsmouth, RI. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, June 12, at 10 am at St. Christopher's Church, Main Road, Tiverton. Burial will follow at St. Patrick's Cemetery, Fall River, MA.

Donations in her memory may be made to the RI Community Food Bank https://rifoodbank.org/ or to Camp Ker-Anna in Cumberland, RI, https://www.keranna.org/

Online Tribute at www.memorialfuneralhome.com