Andria Barnes Ruth, beloved wife, mother and grandmother, passed away on June 29, 2023. Andria was born on Feb. 17, 1965 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Tanya Barnes and James Kenneth Barnes.
She was raised in Glendale, California, and attended Polytechnic School in Pasadena. Andria graduated from Yale University and obtained her medical degree from Harvard Medical School, where she met her husband Robert Ruth.
Andria and Rob were married on Oct. 6, 1990. She completed her residency and fellowship in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Andria was a gifted pediatrician who devoted her career to bettering the lives of children. After returning to California, she found a professional home at the Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics, where she worked for 19 years.
As a physician, she was known for her keen diagnostic skills as well as her genuine love and concern for the children she cared for. Andria embraced opportunities to support children with complex needs.
Her fluency in Spanish allowed her to break down barriers to care and build trust with families in her community. She formed deep and lasting relationships with her patients, remembering small details about their lives and interests. Children left appointments with “Doctora Ruth” feeling understood and knew that she was rooting for them.
As the co-chair of the Pediatric Resilience Collaborative (PeRC), she developed community-wide approaches to promoting family resilience.
Andria was passionate about training future physicians and was instrumental in establishing the Cottage Children’s Pediatric Residency as the associate program director.
In her work with the Thrasher Research Fund, Andria helped allocate funds to support research projects in children’s health around the world.
Of all her roles, the closest to her heart were that of wife, mother and grandmother. Since meeting on the first day of medical school, Andria and Rob grew together and supported each other in every endeavor.
Andria raised her three children with love and cultivated in them a desire for learning and individual growth. She joined her children in every one of their passions and cherished their accomplishments. One of her greatest joys was seeing each of her children find their eternal companion and she relished making memories with her grandchildren.
As she faced growing health challenges, Andria’s tenacious spirit was unwavering and she maintained her commitment to her work and her family. Her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ strengthened her and she faced every trial with optimism.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by her children, Corinne Espinoza (Freddy); Miranda Cameron (Angus); and Kendall Ruth (Madelyn); grandchildren Michael and Arthur Espinoza and William and Ezra Cameron; and sisters Courtney Ransom and Branden Belford.
Andria’s legacy of service, courage, and compassion will live on in the hearts of those she taught, those she healed, and those she loved.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, July 10 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 2107 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara.
Memorial contributions in honor of Andria may be made to the Pediatric Residency Program through the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital Foundation (IHO Andria Ruth, MD; PO Box 689 Santa Barbara, CA 93102; https://www.cottagehealth.org/donate/ ; or to the National Leiomyosarcoma Foundation, https://nlmsf.org/donate/.