Obituary of Benjamin Matthew Ruddy

Benjamin Matthew Ruddy, age 7 months, died on Wednesday, January 2, 2019, at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital in New York City. Ben was born on May 4, 2018, in New York, to parents Annie and Chris Ruddy. At birth, he was unexpectedly diagnosed with complex congenital heart disease and spent his entire short life in the hospital. His care was managed by the incredible teams in both the infant and pediatric cardiac units at MSCHONY. He underwent several open-heart surgeries, including a heart transplant in October 2018. Ben’s strength and bravery were an inspiration to everyone who knew him, and he touched many lives both in and out of the hospital. He loved stories, music and his many blankets and lovies. Even though Ben’s life was short, he was constantly surrounded by so much love from everyone who cared for him. Ben is survived by his parents, Annie and Chris; his brother Jack; his maternal grandparents Bob and Cathy Kissling; his paternal grandparents Dan and Linda Ruddy; his maternal great-grandparents Bob and Dolores Lesiecki; his paternal great-grandmother Betty Seifritz; his uncle Matthew Kissling (Kristen); his aunt Sarah Ruddy, and many other relatives and friends. A memorial service will take place at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital on Saturday, January 12, 2019. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of the following causes that were helpful to Ben and his family: - Child Life department at MSCHONY http://give.nyp.org/goto/benruddy - Hearts for Emma https://www.njsharingnetwork.org/h4econtribute - The Children’s Heart Foundation http://www.childrensheartfoundation.org To plant Memorial Trees in memory of Benjamin Matthew Ruddy, please click here to visit our Sympathy Store.