Helen (Jody) Bennett Lucine died in Gilroy on Sunday, March 20,
2005.
Helen (Jody) Bennett Lucine died in Gilroy on Sunday, March 20, 2005.
Born in Palo Alto, Oct. 2, 1927, she graduated from Palo Alto High School and St. Luke’s Nursing School, San Francisco, then worked at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital, Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia, Palo Alto Medical Clinic, UCSF and The Lahey Clinic in Boston.
Her parents, Merrill and Dorcas Bennett predeceased her but she’s survived by her older brother, John Francis and his former wife Polly; their daughter, Erica Bennett Leary and her younger brother Stephen Williams Bennett and his wife Linnea and their children Leslie, Merrill and Price.
Mrs. Lucine met her surviving husband, Dr. Andrew Lucine in Philadelphia and they married in 1957, beginning nearly 48 memorable years filled with love, respect and admiration. She had an aptitude for noticing the value of things and making them better; she did this nine different times, making happy homes out of a basement apartment in Boston, a beach house at Pajaro Dunes and finally the ranch in Gilroy. In each of these places her entertainment and cooking skills were openly acclaimed. She learned cooking from many “masters” including her mother, Dorcas, her mother-in-law, now deceased, Ray Lucine of Philadelphia and certain members of Cordon Bleu, Paris.
Her Christmas celebrations with the luminaries and the Easter day egg hunt festivities were enjoyed by the young and old. She successfully carried out numerous weddings including those of her daughters, Helen Rachel, Anne Merrill (Didi) Howard and her son Albert Andrew.
She is survived by her children who “motorhomed” with her across the country to Morgan Horse shows, to “the McKenzie” in Oregon and to Pajaro Dunes. They will remember and cherish her attachment and appreciation of “their” music of the ’60s and ’70s, along with her love of classical music.
Over the years, she endeared herself to many people, especially her son-in-law, George E. Howard III, her daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Colombet Lucine and four other “daughters” who think of and refer to her as “Mom,” Mary Wickershem of Gilroy, Padi Romero of Santa Cruz, Melany Dudas of Watsonville, and Deanna Van Ooy Besvold of Long Beach.
She also is survived by her grandchildren, Brandon and Travis Johnson, Catherine and George E. Howard IV, and Katelin and Rachel Lucine who will remember their “grandma” for her love for them and for her knowledge of California and Oregon nature, especially her birds and their songs.
A memorial service will be held at 7pm Monday, April 4, 2005 at Habing Family Funeral Home, Gilroy.
In lieu of flowers please consider donations in her memory to Nursing Education Fund, Saint Louise Regional Hospital Foundation, 9400 No Name Uno, Gilroy, CA 95020.
