Darlene Ruth Rubenstein passed away Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at home after a long, courageous battle with breast cancer. Darlene was born December 18, 1930 in Madison, Kansas, the youngest of three children born to Chester (4/15/1901 - 10/20/1961) and Bertha (11/17/1896 -6/6/1944) Norton. She moved to Springfield at the age of thirteen shortly after the death of her mother, living with her maternal aunt and uncle, Bernice and Meyer Ziman. Darlene graduated from Springfield High School, currently Central High School, in 1948. She continued her education at Southwest Missouri State Teachers College, currently Missouri State University, earning a degree in Home Economics in May, 1952. In June of that year, she married George Rubenstein, son of Arthur and Thelma Rubenstein, also of Springfield. Darlene was a homemaker for the first twenty years of her married life to George. She raised her three children, served as home-room mother for each and went to all games, school functions and recitals. In 1972, she joined the family business, Rubenstein's Clothing Company, serving as office manager and supporting George in the business until it closed in 1985. She went to work for Springfield Public Schools in 1986 as a Special Education Instructor until her retirement in 1994. Darlene and George have been members of Temple Israel since 1952, where she served as president of the Temple Sisterhood and as an instructor in the religious school. She was also a member of Home Economists In Homemaking. Darlene was a very close to her grandchildren Elliot, Joseph and Emily, making certain they all knew how to make her famous sugar cookies! She was preceded in death by her parents, Bertha and Chester Norton; her aunt and uncle, Bernice and Meyer Ziman; her in-laws, Arthur and Thelma Rubenstein; and her sister, Genevieve Haynes. She is survived by her husband of sixty years, George Rubenstein. Other surviving family members include her brother, Kenneth Norton of Stockton, CA; daughter Rosemary of Springfield; son Steve and his wife Karen of Dayton, OH; and daughter Julie and her husband Mark Henderson of Denver, CO. Surviving grandchildren include Elliot Rubenstein and Emily and Joseph Henderson. Also surviving Darlene is her best friend of forty years, Mary Ann Wood. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. Visitation will be on Sunday, June 24 from 2:00PM to 4:00 PM. A private family interment will be Monday, June 25 at 10:00 a.m. at Temple Israel Cemetery, Springfield, MO. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Crayons to Classrooms, 1511 Kuntz Road, Dayton, OH 45404, www.dc2c.org or the Breast Cancer Foundation Of The Ozarks, 330 North Jefferson Ave., Springfield, MO,65806, www.bcfo.org or the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, 60 East 56thStreet, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10022, wwwbcrfcure.org. The family would like to express their gratitude and appreciation to the staff of Oxford Home Health and Oxford Hospice Care for going above and beyond the call of duty. Thank you.