Obituaries

Retired Hollister teacher and business woman Elverna L. Paine passed away at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital on October 4th at the age of 86 years. Elverna was a native of San Jose, and had resided in San Benito County since the 1920's. Upon earning her BA Degree in education with a minor in music from San Jose State, Elverna began her teaching career in 1942 at Southside School, Hollister, then taught briefly in Gilroy, before returning Hollister's North County School District where she ended a teaching career that spanned 25 years. She taught English as a second language at Spring Grove School, as many migrant families had children enrolled there.. "She was a very dedicated teacher and was very proud of her students successes", said her daughter Sue Anne James. Retiring from teaching she was able to take a full time interest in Paine's Restaurant, the restaurant that she and her late husband LeRoy Paine and brother-in-law and sister-in-law Delmer and June Paine established in Hollister. Her activities and memberships included the California Retired Teachers Association; Y.L.I. ; I.C.F.; Bolado Park and Ridgemark Golf Clubs; her bus trips to the theater arts in San Francisco; her Pedro card parties; going to her home at Lake Tahoe with her friends; and most of all her music - playing the piano and accordion with small combo groups, and later with Bob Bouchard's Big Band. "The 17 years that she played with the Bid Band were among some of the happiest of times. She certainly was a good trooper. "The hundreds of gigs that we played from Pebble Beach to Coconut Grove and on to San Francisco and all places in between were some of her fondest memories", said Bob Bouchard. " Elverna had a wonderful life and made lots of people happy with her music. Music makes the world go'round. No one understood that more than Elverna", said Bob. Elverna is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Sue Anne and Bill James of Gilroy; her sisters Elsie Rossi and Barbara Winn of Hollister and many nieces, nephews, grand nieces and grand nephews. She was the daughter of the late Frank & Mary Bozzo; the spouse of the late LeRoy Paine; sister of the late Helen Bozzo and Sam Bozzo.

Martha was born May 12th, 1915, in Fairmead, California. Her parents were John and Mary Lichti. She was the youngest of nine children and is survived by one sister, Marie Lichti White, age 101. Martha will join Clair, her husband of sixty-eight years, who preceded her in death in 2003. Her four children; Donald, Richard, Mary Jean and Harry James will miss her dearly. She also leaves eleven devoted grandchildren and twenty-three great-grandchildren. She was a devout Christian wife and mother and was active in church work in Sanger, Morgan Hill, Gilroy, California, and the Grants Pass and Brookings areas of Oregon for most of her life. Many adults reading this may remember her driving them to school on the buses she drove for the San Martin/Morgan Hill Unified School District for more than 20 years. She retired in 1978 to move to Oregon.

Dolores "Dede" J. (Ardizzone) Mariani - On December 26, 1944, Dede Mariani joined the family of her parents, Victor and Virginia Ardizzone and sister, Jo Ann, the day after Christmas. Throughout her life, she continued to be a gift. A native of San Jose, Dede graduated in 1962 from Samuel Ayer High School in Milpitas and attended San Jose City College. After vacationing in New Orleans, Louisiana she relocated and resided there for 18 months. A few years after returning to San Jose, her Aunt and future Brother-in-Law gave fate a hand in introducing Dede to her husband, Mitchell. In 1971, the newlyweds established their home on his parent's fruit ranch in Morgan Hill. Dede's family became complete with the birth of her Son, Mitchell II in 1974 and her daughter, Stacy in 1976. In the many years to follow, continuous growth of the families business, tireless dedication to her children and her love and commitment to her husband is what she lived for. On October 5, 2007, Dede joined her father and other family members on the other side of Heavens gate at the age of 62.