Stephanie (Ruff) Eads Lutes
War bride, mother, gardener. Born on Nov. 1, 1919, in Dunstable, England; died on June 25, 2015, in Moncton, N.B., of complications of Alzheimer's disease, aged 95.
When Stephanie Eads was a little girl growing up in Bath, England, her antics with a pet dog gave her the nickname she would always be known by – Ruff. Hers was a close-knit family and when an aunt who had been a French tutor in Vienna let a teenaged Ruff know about an au pair position in Austria, she was eager for the adventure.
In 1936, she moved to an ancient Hapsburg castle on the Danube, the home of Archduke Hubert Salvator and Archduchess Rosemary. Ruff was treated like one of the family at the castle, Schloss Persenbeug, escorting the children on walks, cycling to nearby villages and taking trips by river boat and train.
Although she became fluent in German, her employers preferred to use English; as war clouds gathered, conversations became more urgent. Ruff later recalled that the Archduke was visibly shaken when recounting that a friend of his, a highly respected Jewish man, was forced to clean toilets.
In late August, 1939, the British consulate advised Ruff that she should leave immediately, which she did. Back in Bath, she found work in an office and her life became filled with wartime volunteer activities, such as first-aid courses and watching for fires during the Blitz. In April, 1942, the city was heavily bombed. "Another raid in the night, much worse than last night," Ruff wrote in her journal. "Bath seems to be all on fire." For years after, whenever a siren sounded, her legs went wobbly.
Her parents, like many others in the community, opened their home to Canadian soldiers stationed nearby, inviting them for meals and a bit of relaxation. In September, 1941, they welcomed Bill Lutes, from the 1st Canadian Tank Brigade. Bill was not only charming and polite, he also had a good sense of humour which appealed to Ruff.
While in England, Bill was hospitalized with severe arthritis. Friendship had developed into romance and they became engaged while he was in hospital. Soon after, he was shipped back to New Brunswick; he spent most of the war in a veterans' hospital. When Ruff's doctor advised her that she would be marrying an invalid, she wrote to Bill to end their engagement. Having second thoughts, she sent a telegram telling him to disregard her letter. In her journal she wrote, "I believe Bill will get well and we will live happily in Canada."
In March, 1945, she arrived in Moncton, where they married that month. Bill was well enough by then to secure good employment as a technician in the Moncton airport's meteorology office. Together they raised their children (Fred, John and Rosemary) in their comfortable home on the shores of the Petitcodiac River.
Ruff was a keen knitter and an avid gardener; her home was surrounded by lovely flower gardens and productive fruit and vegetable plots. She remained in their home long after Bill died in 1991, welcoming friends and family in her unassuming and gracious manner.
Ruff and Archduchess Rosemary were not in touch during the war years, but they resumed contact later and Ruff went at least twice to visit the family, still in their castle home. The first letter from the Archduchess after the war included words that remain fitting: "No one has forgotten you, dear Ruff … We all keep you in best remembrance."
Claudia Lutes Tugwell is a relative of Ruff's husband and a long-time friend of Ruff.