Fern LaChristha Becker

Fern La Christha (Lugenheim) Becker

August 1, 1927 – December 22, 2025

Fresno/Clovis, CA

Beloved mother, wife, grandmother, great-grandmother Fern went to be with our Lord Jesus in her eternal home on December 22nd at the grand age of 98 after a stroke leading to heart failure. Fern was born in Wichita Falls, Texas to Bertha and Frederick Lugenheim. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in fine arts at Midwestern University in Texas. A talented painter, sculptor, jeweler, Fern had a special love of the Southwest and spent time in Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico, which is reflected in much of her art. She worked as cartographer for the U.S. Soil Conservation Service in Albuquerque. She also spent time working in Washington, DC and a summer painting in Cape Cod.

While attending a Lutheran Walther League summer camp she met her future husband Randolph A. Becker. They were married on March 31, 1956 in Santa Fe, New Mexico where Randy was working at the White Sands Missile Range. They built a home in Alamogordo, New Mexico where their first two daughters were born. The couple moved to Altadena, California in the early 1960s for a job opportunity Randy was offered at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Their third daughter was born in Altadena. Fern was a homemaker, crafter, collector and volunteer who was very involved in church activities while raising their three daughters. Retirement took them to Rogers, Arkansas after the kids were grown and started their own families. They enjoyed lake living, sailing, church activities and lasting friendships in Rogers until Randy’s passing in July of 2010. They had been married for 54 years. Fern then moved to Fresno, CA to be near daughter Holly Perry and family. She lived in independent/assisted living homes for 12 years until her passing.

Fern is survived by her three children: Christy Poynter of Long Beach, CA, Holly Perry of Fresno, CA and Heidi Taylor of Newport, RI. Six grandchildren: Odessa, Morgan, James, Nathan, Marcella and Alexis; and three great-grandchildren Baran, Madison and Finley Fern.