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Thursday's Internet Edition, 11:31 AM, March 18, 2010.
Longtime RM resident Patricia Kreidt dies at 85
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Patricia Kreidt
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Patricia Kreidt, who lived in Rancho Murieta for 28 years, died on Feb. 2 at the age of 85. She was born on December 6, 1924. A resident of Murieta Village, she moved from Sacramento to RM in 1981 with her husband, Leonard.
Her large circle of RM friends described Mrs. Kreidt as a social butterfly and consummate hostess. She was very active within the community, having belonged to the RM Women’s Club (RMWC), the RM Niner’s Golf Club and the Murieta Voices choral group. As a member of RMWC, she was devoted to the Bunko group and the Super Seniors (now called the Gladabouts), an activity and event group for senior women.
According to Gladabouts outings coordinator Cathy King, Mrs. Kreidt was always up for anything. “We have three events a month such as going to plays and Bingo,” King said. “Pat always loved the Bingo and pretty much enjoyed participating in all the activities. She just loved to socialize.”
Before moving to RM, Mrs. Kreidt worked for 10 years with California Grocers Association. This was hardly her first job, according to close friend Irene Hollander. “During World War II she was a Rosie the Riveter,” Hollander said. And when she lived in Southern California, she worked as a receptionist for one of the movie studios. She always told the story about how they used her legs for a shot in ‘Ten Little Indians’ because the star of the movie was bowlegged.”
While working with the grocer's lobby, Mrs. Kreidt became involved in the Capitol Legislative Women of California and Nevada, a group that held an annual golf tournament. According to Hollander, that annual event evolved into a luncheon. “That’s one thing from her days in the Capitol that she stayed involved in,” Hollander said. “Twelve of the women from that group started joining Pat for monthly dinner gatherings and an evening of cards. They would play until the wee hours of the morning.”
Many in RM who knew Mrs. Kreidt agreed that cards were her greatest passion – specifically, pinochle. When she moved to Murieta Village, she started another group of eight women to continue her card-playing tradition.
RM resident Bev Brown became friends with Mrs. Kreidt when Brown was invited to join in her pinochle group. “She was absolutely lovely and delightful – and a real party person,” Brown said. “That was a priority with Pat. I remember one year when she was scheduled for some surgery, and she called the doctor to see if she could postpone it because it conflicted with the Super Bowl.”
In addition to parties and pinochle, local friends said Mrs. Kreidt had a passion for cooking and entertaining. “Any time you were invited into her home, it was a gourmet dinner and lots of fun,” Brown said. “She always made everyone feel very welcome. She was a special lady, and she will truly be missed.”
She is already missed in the Murieta Voices choral group, according to choral director Lee Holm. Mrs. Kreidt joined the group about 10 years ago when it was known as the Village Voices. That was before Holm joined and became director. “We used to ride together to go to Curves in Ione,” Holm said. “Pat always would tell me about how much fun she had singing with them. I joined about six months after she talked to me about it.”
Other friends from Murieta Voices recalled how committed she was to the choral group. Jenny Meehan gave Mrs. Kreidt a small reading light for her music pages when her vision became too impaired to read the music. “She also had trouble with her hearing,” Meehan said. “So I would sit next to her and make sure she stayed on the right page. She really hung in there. I remember she came every week.”
Lillian Harris of Murieta Voices remembers that too. “Even when her health started to fail, she stayed with it,” Harris said. “She couldn’t stand much anymore, so she just sat down and kept on singing. She loved going to the assisted living homes and singing the old-time songs for the residents. It brought her a lot of joy.”
Mrs. Kreidt moved to the Sierra Regency Assisted Living Facility in Roseville a year ago. She was preceded in death by her husband, Leonard and daughter, Helen. She is survived by daughter Terry and son-in-law Richard Metsack; grandchildren Gregory and Matthew Metsack and David Nickels; and great-grandchildren Jonathan and Aydann Metsack and Kaylana Nickels.
Murieta Voices will sing four selections at a celebration of life service being held for Mrs. Kreidt this Saturday, March 13. The service will be at Rancho Murieta Country Club from 2 - 4 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to Rancho Murieta Kiwanis Club, P.O. Box 855, Rancho Murieta, CA 95683.
RM resident Raymond Sawyer dies at 87
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Raymond E. Sawyer
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Raymond Everett Sawyer, 87, of Rancho Murieta died February 17 in Sacramento. Mr. Sawyer was born November 7, 1922 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts and was a descendant of New England colonists dating to the 1630s.
Mr. Sawyer's father, New Hampshire native James Sawyer, worked for General Electric (the biggest employer in town) when there was work to be had. His mother, Mabel (Weston) Sawyer, was a Maine native and taught school before her marriage and later worked as a nurse.
Mr. Sawyer spent much of his youth in a house above Pontoosuc Lake—a house that, as he often recalled, collapsed under the heavy snows of 1938. At times during the Great Depression, Mr. Sawyer lived at the Odd Fellows Hall or worked summers at a farm in Quaker Springs, New York. He delivered newspapers to help support the family.
Mr. Sawyer apprenticed as a draftsman at G.E. before enlisting in the U.S. Army in 1942 after the start of World War II. He became an aviation cadet, trained as a navigator and, in 1943, received a commission as an officer in the Army Air Corps. He served in the Eighth Air Force as navigator and then commander of B-24s, flying more than 30 bombing missions over Europe including three on D-Day.
Mr. Sawyer was shot down twice, once over England and once over Belgium. On the latter occasion, he was found by Belgian underground fighters who sent him and his crew back to England in a fishing boat. He received the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart.
After the war, Mr. Sawyer found his way to Southern California. He made his living delivering papers again, running a paddleboard concession at Hansen Reservoir and working in a sporting goods store where his duties included stringing tennis rackets for famed hustler Bobby Riggs. Mr. Sawyer attended Los Angeles City College and majored in engineering at UCLA, where helping football players with homework provided another source of income.
A college friend invited Mr. Sawyer to Eagle Rock Baptist Church, where he came fully to know Jesus Christ. That was also where he met Darlene Wilson, who had grown up in that church. Their first date was a Los Angeles Angels baseball game in the Pacific Coast League. The two were married in 1954.
After graduating from UCLA in 1955, Mr. Sawyer embarked on a 30-year career in the semiconductor industry, beginning with a three-month training program in Philadelphia that gave Darlene Sawyer her first experience with cross-country travel and East Coast living.
The couple lived in two apartments in Los Angeles before buying their first home in La Habra in 1956. Mr. Sawyer spent most of his career with several companies as a “sales engineer” - a salesman who understood the products such as furnaces and other equipment used in the manufacture of silicon wafers.
The couple raised three children, all born while they lived in La Habra. In 1965, the family moved north to Saratoga, in what became known as Silicon Valley. This is where their children grew up. Ironically, in the midst of a career in the industry that developed modern computers, Mr. Sawyer became a regular user of computers himself only in the 1980s, but he took to them with great enthusiasm.
Sales matched well with Mr. Sawyer's longtime passion for golf. A lot of business got done on the course. He also helped run the Semiconductor Golf Classic for approximately 20 years. When he and his wife moved to Rancho Murieta in 1986 after his retirement, the chance to play golf all the time was the main attraction. A longtime PGA fan who regularly donned foul weather gear to attend the Crosby each January, Mr. Sawyer found his dream golden-years work designing databases for golf tournaments including the Senior Gold Rush, which in turn led to invitations to play in the Pro-Am.
In his fifties, he rediscovered tennis and also became an avid skier. He was particularly pleased to get lift tickets for free after reaching age 70. In later years, the Sawyers pursued a new interest in square dancing. They danced with the Jackson Claim Jumpers for 10 years.
The church was always a central part of the couple's life together. They were longtime members of Temple Baptist Church in La Habra, Saratoga Presbyterian Church and Rancho Murieta Community Church. Mr. Sawyer sang in church choirs and was often tabbed to lead congregational singing. He regularly sang “O Holy Night” at the Rancho Murieta Christmas Eve service and “The Holy City” on Palm Sunday.
Mr. Sawyer was preceded in death by his parents; sister Carrie Louise Sawyer; brother David Sawyer; and niece Pamela Sawyer Booth. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Darlene Sawyer of Rancho Murieta; son David Sawyer of Campbell; son Richard Sawyer, daughter-in-law Janet Ewart and grandsons Benjamin Sawyer and Gregory Ewart of Oskaloosa, Iowa; daughter Kathleen Sawyer of Santa Fe, New Mexico; nephew Peter Sawyer of Cambridge, New York; niece Paula Sawyer of Valley Falls, New York; niece Patti Sawyer of Mechanicville, New York; nephew Per Sawyer of San Leandro; nephew William Vlahos of Thousand Oaks; and nephew Mark Vlahos of Florence, Kentucky.
The life Of Mr. Sawyer was celebrated on Feb. 25 at Rancho Murieta Community Church. His ashes were buried with military honors at Sacramento Valley National Cemetery.
Former RM resident Al Johnson dies at 89
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Albert W. Johnson
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Albert W. Johnson, a former Rancho Murieta resident, died at his Chicago home on Jan. 13 after battling lung cancer. He was 89 years old. Mr. Johnson was born in St. Louis, Missouri on Feb. 23, 1920.
Mr. Johnson, who left a large footprint in the Chicago area business and political scenes, lived in the Fairways neighborhood of RM North with his son Tony Johnson during the winters from 1994 to 2007.
Mr. Johnson became well known after establishing himself as the first African-American owner of two GM auto franchises in Chicago by 1971. In the political arena, he played instrumental roles in electing Harold Washington as Chicago’s first black mayor and was the first major contributor to President Barack Obama’s then U.S. Senate campaign.
As large as his business and political footprints were, Mr. Johnson also made a large local impression, according to his son. “When my dad purchased his corner property in the Fairways, he bought two lots so he could throw big block parties,” Johnson said. “He enjoyed people, and he enjoyed entertaining. He put a tremendous amount of resources into landscaping all that property so he could do it up in style.”
Johnson also said his father was very involved in community events and especially the RM Country Club. “He was very active in Casino Night, and he did special event nights at the country club four or five times a year,” Johnson said. “And the poker games at the club were almost a ritual.”
Several of Mr. Johnson’s RM friends remember those poker games with great fondness. Al Dolata is one who played with him regularly. “He loved the game,” Dolata said. “I suspect poker is half the reason he kept coming back to Rancho Murieta.”
Even though Mr. Johnson made a professional and political name for himself half a continent away, his RM friends and neighbors were well aware of it. Longtime poker buddy Andy Anderson said he couldn’t help being swayed by his friend's gentlemanly ways and impressive style. “He was never one to boast or put on airs,” Anderson recalled. “But it was very obvious that he was a successful man in his own right.”
It seemed that Mr. Johnson was destined for success early on, even though as a young man he didn’t follow the path his parents had laid out for him. His father was an obstetrician and pushed his son to go to medical school. In a 1998 exclusive interview with “N’DIGO” newspaper, Mr. Johnson explained his decision not to follow that path. “I saw the hours my father put in and decided that I didn’t want any part of it,” he said.
After receiving a B.S. degree in business administration in 1940, Mr. Johnson went to work as an assistant hospital administrator, however it seemed he had another calling.
In 1954, a time when African Americans weren’t allowed to sell cars on the showroom floor, Mr. Johnson began selling cars door to door on a part-time basis. “He had tremendous amounts of race-related obstacles to overcome,” Tony Johnson said. “He had lived through the depression, though, and he was a fighter.”
Despite his obstacles, Mr. Johnson was so successful as a car salesman that by 1967 he was offered an Oldsmobile dealership in Chicago and became the first African-American to be awarded a new car franchise by GM. By 1971, he also owned a Cadillac dealership.
This example of dogged persistence in the face of adversity earned Mr. Johnson the respect of his RM friends. Dolata equates him to other champions of the civil rights era. “I think it’s fair to mention his name with the likes of Rosa Parks and the Greensboro Four,” Dolata said. “Al definitely did his part in the struggle to break the color barrier. In his own way, he was a great man.”
Anderson agrees but also recalls a humorous side to Mr. Johnson’s business acumen. “We used to park next to each other behind the country club kitchen on poker nights,” Anderson said. “One night, as we returned to our cars, I offered to trade him even-up – my ’89 pickup for his Corvette. Well, I guess it’s fair to say that Al knew his way around cars because he politely declined.”
Mr. Johnson is survived by his wife of 57 years, Marion and three sons: Albert Johnson Jr. of Palos Hills, Illinois; Donald Johnson of Chicago; and Antwone (Tony) Johnson of Folsom.
Sloughhouse resident Mary Arjil dies at 90
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Mary Louise Arjil
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A memorial service will be held Thursday, Feb. 11 for Mary Louise Arjil (Mommy Arjil), a longtime resident of Sloughhouse who died Feb. 1, 2010 at the age of 90.
Mrs. Arjil was born Dec. 19, 1919 in Stockton to Telesforo and Lucrecia Soto. She grew up there and then worked in the hop fields in Sloughhouse where she met her future husband, Antonio Arjil.
The couple married in 1940, and they were together for 54 years until his death in 2004.
Mrs. Arjil not only drove a truck during hop season, she also picked cotton, grapes and prunes. Her last job was as a custodian and yard duty supervisor at Cosumnes River Elementary School, and it was there she acquired the title of “Mommy Arjil” given her by the students.
Her interests included going to casinos, gardening, cooking, traveling and entertaining family and friends with her humor. “However, she also had a temper, and if you stepped out of line she would not hesitate to give you ‘the look,’” daughter Yolanda Silva said. “She was very honest and wasn’t afraid to give you her opinion on a topic whether you asked for it or not.”
Mrs. Arjil is survived by her children, Anthony Arjil and wife Connie of Placerville; Richard Arjil and wife Marilynn of Sacramento; Yolanda Silva of Elk Grove; Mary Lou Nutting and husband Skip of Mt. Aukum; Tom Arjil and wife Cricket and Dirk Arjil and wife Cyndi all of Sloughhouse. She is also survived by 17 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Tomorrow's services begin at 11 a.m. at Elk Grove Funeral Chapel, 9101 Elk Grove Blvd. Remembrances may be made to the American Diabetes Society at 1501 El Camino Ave., Suite 4, Sacramento, CA 95815; or the Alzheimer’s Aid Society, 2641 Cottage Way, Suite 4, Sacramento, CA 95825.
ARCHIVE OF RECENT OBITUARIES
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