Ruth Elizabeth (Bosma) Murra, the daughter of Edward and Elizabeth (Nerdig) Bosma, was born July 31, 1932, on a farm in Hebron Township, Kossuth County near Stevens. The family moved to a farm east of Rake, and she attended Lincoln #1 country school, east of Rake. The family later moved to a farm northwest of Buffalo Center, and she graduated from the Buffalo Center Community School in 1949.