Ruth Elizabeth Diffendal was born January 22, 1907, at Robbins Station, Pa., the eldest of a family of five, including an adopted brother. Later the family moved to McKeesport, Pa. After attending St. Joseph’s Academy at Clyde for a year, Ruth entered as a postulant on August 4, 1925 and was invested with the Benedictine habit Feb. 13, 1926. Her sister Helen, a year and a half younger, also attended the Academy, entered at Clyde in 1926, and became Sister M. Angelica. Sister M. Benigna made her first profession of vows on February 15, 1927, perpetual vows in 1932, and received Consecration of Virgins in November, 1952.

Sister was a very animated person, had a keen intelligence, a very retentive memory, and did much reading. From the time of her novitiate until May, 1939 she was a skilled and faithful letter-writer at the Clyde Correspondence Department. At that time she was transferred to our Tucson priory, where she continued to do the same kind of work. Being also gifted with artistic talent, she returned to Clyde in April 1941 to work with Sisters M. Cyrilla and Angelica in the Art department. From February 1945 to May, 1947 Sister was stationed at our Mundelein priory. It was about this time that Sister began to show symptoms of mental illness, and thereafter was frequently hospitalized for treatment and therapy. From October, 1966 to September, 1968 she was in the infirmary at our Kansas City priory, and received periodic treatments at the hospital as an out-patient. In September, 1968 she returned to the Clyde infirmary. Here she was able to perform various small tasks and did handiwork, such as crocheting afghans.

To the very end of her life, Sister loved and appreciated the perpetual adoration, and despite her handicap was able to take official holy adoration quite regularly. A Sister who knew Sister M. Benigna intimately characterized her as "a wonderful person, charitable, fervent and kind; very good, dutiful charitable, fervent and kind; a good, dutiful, exact, silent, obedient, dependable religious, deeply interior and self-sacrificing." Sister was gracious in manner; gratitude, gentleness and kindness were characteristic traits.

In July, 1973 Sister fell in her infirmary room and broke her hip. On August 9th, while recuperating at St. Francis Hospital in Maryville, she somehow evaded the watchfulness of those attending her, managed to get out of bed and fell again, sustaining another fracture just below the first one. Sister was transferred to St. Mary's Hospital in Kansas City. She suffered much pain and discomfort, but was able to be in a wheelchair for short periods. Her doctors claimed she would never be able to walk again.

The morning of September 2, just after the nurses had put Sister in the wheelchair, they noticed her head suddenly slump forward. The house doctor happened to be present and every effort was made to revive her, but to no avail. Her soul had taken its flight heavenward. By coincidence, her day of burial was set for September 5th, the day which had been planned as a special day of thanksgiving throughout our Congregation, beginning the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the arrival of our first pioneers in America from Maria Rickenbach. The Liturgy therefore assumed a festive air, and special gratitude for all that Sister had contributed to the Congregation was included. Sister was in the 67th year of her age and the 47th of her religious profession.