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Kaye Fennell passed away peacefully at home in Fairfield on Aug. 30, 2011, after a long battle with cancer.
A well-loved mother, grandmother, sister and friend, she was born on Nov. 13, 1949, in Oroville. She also lived in Yuba City and Lindenhurst, Ill., before finally moving to Fairfield in 1989.
From the age of 16, Kaye worked at J.C. Penney until her retirement last year. Before her illness took hold, she traveled to Ireland, France and Hawaii among other places with friends and family. While at home, she enjoyed gardening in her yard, watching “Survivor” and gossiping with her friends, Penny and Barbara.
She is survived by her children Laura and Jeff; grandchildren Logan, Trevor and Connor; sister Pam; and her rambunctious puppy, Saddie.
A visitation was planned on Monday, Sept. 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Bryan-Braker Funeral Home in Fairfield. Funeral services were held on Tuesday, Sept. 6, at 1 p.m. at Bryan-Braker Funeral Home. Burial took place at Memorial Park Cemetery
in Oroville.
Bobbie R. Fisher, 79, passed away on Aug. 28, 2011, in Chico. She was born June 18, 1932, in
Oklahoma and migrated to Winters during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Her family resided at the Winters camp and she attended local schools, as did her children. Her lifelong best friend since they were both in the second grade, Geraldine Willard, was with her by phone right up to the last day of her life.
Fisher had an infectious laugh and a wonderful sense of humor. She loved card games, crosswords and writing poetry. She had a strong faith and belief in prayer. She loved people for who they were and had a beautiful, glowing spirit that will never be diminished, said her loved ones, adding that she was beloved and will be greatly missed by all who knew her.
She is survived by her husband of 42 years, Slim Fisher; daughter Karen Sellers and spouse Wally of Gig Harbor, Wash.; daughter Sheila White and spouse Dennis of Vacaville; son Mike Humphrey and Karen Kline of Chehalis, Wash.; daughter Darla Presba and spouse Paul of Sacramento; stepchildren Ron, Pam and Dewayne, all of Southern California; grandchildren Landon Sellers of Richmond, Va., Erin Sellers of Ellensberg, Wash., Toby of Oregon and Cholena.
Funeral services are planned for 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Old Magalia Church in Magalia.
Lula Fay Callison, 84, died Friday, Feb. 4, 2011, at Kaiser Hospital in Vacaville. She died peacefully after a two-year battle with several health issues. She was a longtime resident of Winters, but born in Oklahoma.
She was a mother of 11 children. She was preceded in death by husbands L.C. Underwood and William B. Callison; daughters Linda Underwood, 6 months, Lorna Underwood, 9 years, and Shilla Callison, 3 years; son Jimmy Callison, 5 years; and granddaughter Shandra Callison (Norma), 24 years.
She is survived by son Larry Underwood of Dugan, Laura Crespo of Winters, Lecia Callison of Winters, Lorraine Underwood of Washington, John Callison of Dugan, Sandra Callison of Oregon, Cheryl Beckingham of Fairfield; 27 great-grandchildren, 13 grand children and four great-great-grandchildren.
She will be laid to rest next to her longtime boyfriend J.R. Bishop at Winters Cemetery.
Andrew Gustaf Anderson died Sunday, Feb. 6, at a nursing home in Woodland. He was 103.
Anderson was born April 10, 1907, in San Francisco.
He was a long-time Winters resident and worked for 30 years as manager of the Bank of America branch in Winters before retiring in 1975.
No memorial services are planned. Interment will be at Winters Cemetery.
Cindy Lou Layton, 51, died Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011, at Kaiser Hospital in Vacaville, when she lost her long courageous battle with cancer. Born Nov. 21, 1959, to Bill and Jannes Echols in Fairfield, she was raised on the family ranch in Pleasants Valley, near Winters. She attended Winters schools and graduated from Winters High School in 1977.
She married the love of her life, Russell Layton of Winters, in 1981. They had two children, Sarah and Rusty, and made their home together in Winters. She loved her dogs unconditionally and they were a big part of the family as well.
Cindy was a fun-loving wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, auntie, niece and friend. She held many jobs during her life, some of which included working in retail at various establishments and working for the Winters School District, but her most notable employment was her bookkeeping position for Kimes Ace Hardware in Winters.
She was an avid reader, weekly bingo player, great cook, dog lover, elephant collector and was a member of a local book club. Her hobbies included sewing, quilting, crossword puzzles, going to the movies, crocheting and playing cards.
Two things Cindy considered her great legacies were teaching her daughter Sarah how to crochet and sew, and her son Rusty how to cook. She was warm and welcoming and made people feel like they had known her forever as soon as they met her. She especially enjoyed her trips to the ocean.
Anchor Bay was her favorite beach. She had many devoted friends and will be greatly missed.
She is survived by her husband, Russell Layton; daughter Sarah Layton; son Rusty Layton and his fiancée Emma Ozment; stepdaughter Melissa Meredith, her husband Bruce Meredith and grandson Trent Meredith; sisters Thelma Maier, Rebecca Griffey and Debra Echols; brothers-in-law Stephen Griffey, Randy Simmons and Tracy Layton, all of Winters, and Lonnie Layton of Reno; sister-in law Trish Layton of Winters; aunts and uncles Joan Gates, Coy and Shirley Nichols, and Bill and Barbara Nichols, all of Pleasants Valley; a multitude of nieces, nephews and cousins, including Allie Griffey, Johnny, Nicholas and William Maier, Katie Hickman and Emily Layton.
She was preceded in death by her mother and father, Jannes and Bill Echols of Pleasants Valley; mother-in-law, Betty Layton; grandparents Ira and Thelma Nichols, and Marshall and Opal Echols; uncle Bruce Gates; and her brother-in-law Jerry Maier of Winters.
Friends and relatives are invited to attend a memorial on Thursday, Jan. 27, at 11 a.m. at Pioneer Presbyterian Church in Winters. A reception will immediately follow the ceremony in Wesley Hall. McCune Garden Chapel of Vacaville assisted the family with the arrangements.
Memorial contributions can be made in Cindy’s name to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Attn: Donor Services, PO Box 650309, Dallas, TX 75265-0309; (877) 465-6636; donorinquiry@komen.org; or https://ww5.komen.org/Donate/DonateOnline.html.
Catherine Doane Alexander, a native of San Jose, passed away in Davis, on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011. She attended St. Leo’s Elementary School and Notre Dame High School and graduated from UC Berkeley in 1945. In 1946, she married William Alexander and they celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary in 2004.
She worked beside her husband, Bill, in San Jose as the interior decorator for his custom homes. Many of the residential developments built by Bill Alexander still exist today and are well known as quality communities in the Willow Glen area. They enjoyed their life on Mulberry Lane raising their children and entertaining their many friends.
In 1965, Catherine and Bill moved their family to Winters to start a new life with the purchase of the Pleasants Ranch. They were known in the Winters area for their cherries and later for their California sun-dried tomatoes. Catherine was very involved in the ranch and ran the packing shed and fruit stand. During the months of May and June, she was known as “The Cherry Lady.” Many times Channel 6 (KVIE) would arrive at Pleasants Ranch to do documentaries on the cherry crop and dried fruit operations. Catherine always included everyone at the ranch and she and Bill loved having friends and family over to enjoy the country life and Bill’s “Monet Garden.” 2001 began a new chapter in their lives when they moved to their final destination together, Carmel.
Nothing pleased Catherine more than having the family over for dinner. She will be remembered by her many friends as a fabulous cook, the consummate party hostess, the one possessing a positive outlook on life, a lover of adventure, a steward of etiquette and sophistication, and a great mother to her children. She also loved the game of bridge and played golf into her 70s.
She was the loving mother of Leslie Barth (Stan) of Esparto, Lindsey Bressani (Steve) of Folsom, Lorie Lindsey (Michael) of Sacramento, Matthew Alexander (Penelope) of Hillsborough, and Lisa Alexander of San Francisco. She had nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. She was affectionately referred to by her grandchildren as Mom and Cath.
She was respected by everyone that had the privilege of knowing her. Her memory will last forever in the hearts of all her friends and family. A private family mass will be held.
With his family by his bedside, Pete Hidetaka Kato, 91, passed away peacefully on Dec. 31, 2010. Kato was born on April 2, 1919, in Walnut Grove, to Sakujiro and Utae Kato. A longtime Winters resident, he graduated from Winters High School in 1939. In high school he excelled at baseball and track.
In 1941, he joined the Army and served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II. The 442nd was comprised of American-born sons of Japanese immigrants. The 442nd’s motto was “Go For Broke” as they fought on the front lines and became the most decorated unit for its size and length of service in the history of the U.S. military. He served for five years with his last position being platoon sergeant. After the war, Kato returned to Winters where his family was in the farming business. Through an introduction by friends, he met Kimi Nakamura and they married on Feb. 26, 1950. He and Kimi shared a loving 60-year partnership.
Kato’s most happy times were spent with Kimi and their family: son, Ken Kato; daughter, Christine Walton and her husband, Bill; granddaughters Melissa (Willard) Overgaard and her husband, Mark and Nancy (Walton) Ha and her husband, Tim; and great-granddaughters, Kendall and Presley Overgaard.
When he wasn’t on a tractor tending to his orchard, he loved traveling to Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas and playing a game or two of blackjack. He also enjoyed playing poker or Hana with his friends and family. Kato was competitive in nature and loved all sports. He was also fun-loving and freely shared his warm smile and wink with those around him. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
Along with his wife Kimi and his immediate family, Kato is survived by his sister, Yoneko Okuno and brothers Mike (Misao) and Henry (Marge) Kato as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
A celebration of Kato’s life is planned at 11 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 23, at the Winters Community Center. A private burial will be at the Winters Cemetery
at a later date.
Sebastian “Sam” Ramos Lopez passed away at his home on Dec. 29, 2010 at the age of 89. He was born on May 7, 1921, in Vacaville to Rafael and Filomena Lopez, both immigrants from Spain. He and his family, which included his sisters Juanita (Ramos) and Anita (Zentner), lived for many years in Pleasants Valley outside of Winters.
After graduating from Winters High School in 1939, he worked for the original Lorenzo market, the California Market, before joining the Army-Air Force and serving his country proudly during World War II.
After the war, he returned home to Winters to marry his sweetheart, Marie (Carbahal). They were married for 55 years until her death in 2000. They had three children: Sebastian, Michael and Gloria.
Sam farmed his entire adult life in Winters, growing at various times apricots, peaches, almonds and walnuts. In 1990, his son-in-law, Michael Autry, joined him as a partner in farming S.R. Lopez Orchards.
He was also a founding member of the Valley Farmers Co-op, serving as president for many years. Community activities included two terms on the Winters School Board, the Lions Club, VFW, and a lifetime member of the Elks Club.
Surviving him are his three children, and four grandchildren Erin Autry (Matt) Montgomery, Brett (Marilyn) Autry, Matthew Lopez and Cory Lopez.
“He was an inspiration to all, a patriarch of the family, and will be missed,” said a family member.
Services were held on Jan. 3, 2011. Donations in his name may be made be made to favorite charities and/or the Yolo Hospice.the Winters Cemetery
at a later date.
