Yuba County church turns 100. This woman has been there for nearly all of it.
MARYSVILLE — A Yuba County church amid the farms and rice fields of Hallwood is celebrating its centennial on Saturday.
The church, located just outside of Marysville, has seen many people and families come and go, but one person has been there through it all.
"I was born in the realm of the whole thing starting," Ruby Schoenig said.
Ruby and her sister are in their 90s. They started attending Hallwood Community Church around the start of the 1930s. Her sister's health didn't allow for her to join us, but 98-year-old Ruby was happy to show us around.
"That's where I sit, and if I'm not there people behind me will know," Ruby said, showing me around. "And I was gone once and the next time, they said, 'Were you sick? You weren't here!' I said, 'No, I was just someplace else.' "
"There are so many people here that aren't her relatives but think of her as Mom or Grandma," Pastor Stacey Hanson said.
Ruby said the biggest change over the last nearly 100 years is the growing number of people who attend the church.
"This is quite an accomplishment for the church," the pastor said. "Not a lot of churches get to do that and be vibrant and growing and active and serving."
"Actually, I think it's my backbone if that makes any sense to you," Ruby said. "It's what keeps me together. It holds me not only physically and spiritually, but mentally."
The friendships she's made along the way have made a lasting impact on both Ruby and fellow churchgoers.
"She's our little historian. She knows all about the church, in and out of how it's been and where it's been," Pastor Hanson said.
"Well, all the men know her because she likes to give them hugs, and the women too," said Shirley Turbeville, Ruby's caretaker. "She's a 98-year-old flirt, but a good flirt. Everybody here loves Ruby."
Hallwood Community Church is all about fostering a community-driven atmosphere, and Ruby said that's been the case for the last century.
"It shows that we've done the right thing. Some churches start and don't progress," she said. "I don't remember our doors ever being closed for anything or anybody."
The centennial celebrations kick off Saturday, May 4 at 2 p.m.