Collette Claire Kilbourne

Collette Claire (Massette) Kilbourne was born on August 8, 1936 in Chicago, Illinois to Paul & Colette Massette. She was raised in the south suburban area of Chicago, the oldest of 3 children: Her brother, Paul M. Massette who died in 2003, and her sister, Barbara Jeanne Massette who resides in Antigua, Guatemala.

Collette graduated from St. Margaret’s School in 1950, Academy of Our Lady in 1954 and St. Xavier College in 1958 where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing Education. While in school, she had a part in a play put on jointly by St. Xavier College (an all girl school) and St. Joseph’s College (an all boy school) in Rennsalear, Indiana. That was where she first met Bob Kilbourne. Bob and Collette dated periodically until June of 1957, after which they dated regularly, were engaged, and after graduation in June, 1958 they were married on September 13, 1958.

Collette & Bob honeymooned in the Ozarks for 10 days, returning home in time for Bob to complete his 6 months of active duty in the US Army from October, 1958 to March, 1959. They lived in Chicago, then Blue Island, Illinois and then Peoria, Illinois until 1968.

During those years, Collette’s three children were born:

Collette Claire Kilbourne was born on June 11, 1960.

Margaret Catherine Kilbourne was born June 4, 1962.

Robert Paul Kilbourne was born September 21, 1964

Then, one fine autumn day in 1968, Bob & Collette packed up their 3 children and headed for California, stopping off at Disneyland on their way to a new home and a new job in Fremont, California. Before long, Collette had learned about Tole’ Painting and was soon teaching it to others while the family learned to set up and sell her wares at various Art Shows in the San Francisco – Oakland Bay area.

Another move (Bob’s job changed), this time to Butte Montana, gave Collette another opportunity. In addition to the Montana Institute of Art meetings & shows, she spent many hours scouring the Montana countryside for antique treasures. Some “real” antiques she sold to the Antique Dealers that regularly came through Butte. Other items, like trunks, folding grocery boxes, watering cans and any wood or metal items she could paint, were cleaned, painted, varnished and sold at shows all over the mountain west.

In 1974, Collette & Bob joined with 4 other couples and opened The Summer Gallery – a small retail art shop in a bright orange building on south Montana Street in Butte. If the business did not meet with great success, as the name implied, it would close in the fall.

5 years later, after year-round success at bringing Antiques, Art and Culture to Butte, the remaining three partners agreed to liquidate the business. One couple was retiring, one couple was opening their own commercial business and Collette & Bob were once again moving up in the company but out of Montana, back to Peoria, Illinois.

Collette & Bob bought a 135 year old farm house on Main Street in Eureka, Illinois. For the next 15 years Collette continued to paint, teach Tole’ painting, watch for good Antiques and finally, when her middle child, Maggie chose Bradley University as her school of choice, Collette restarted her nursing career at Eureka Community Hospital.

By Christmas of 1995, Collette’s parents had died, all three children had married and moved away to be with their spouses, the Eureka house had been sold and Collette & Bob were living in an apartment in Joliet, Illinois. 2 weeks later, Collette & Bob were on a mission to determine what they wanted to do and where they wanted to live. For 3 months they toured Arizona, New Mexico and Southern California. In March of 1996 they returned to Joliet, closed up the apartment, put everything in storage that didn’t fit in the van and moved to San Diego, California. Collette never looked back – she had found the place where she wanted to live for the rest of her life.

Collette began working at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center where she was a Case Manager until illness forced her to retire after a little more than ten years. Once again Collette adapted to the circumstances and developed her expertise in understanding the stock market. Under her direction, her portfolio of stocks rose faster than the overall market and dropped slower than the market.

In October, 2010, Collette took a nasty fall that put her in the hospital and doctors said she might not survive another leg surgery. She was home for Halloween and Collette & Bob enjoyed another full year together before she finally succumbed to COPD on October 24, 2011.

She is survived by her husband, a sister, her 3 children and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A funeral Mass at St. Pius X Catholic Church will be celebrated at 11:30 AM on November 3, 2011 followed by a reception at the Kilbourne residence at 1137 Calle Dulce from 1 until 4PM.

On Friday, Collette will be buried at Glen Abbey cemetery in Bonita during a private ceremony for the family