Ilene Jefferson

1924 – 2010

Ilene was born January 2, 1924 in Parsons, Kansas. She passed away on April 23, 2010, in Bakersfield, CA.. Ilene is survived by her daughters, Cyndie Noblia and Les Schlais (fiancé) and Sharon and Richard Mead; 4 grandchildren, 9 great grandchildren, 3 sister-in-laws, Lu Capra, Elaine Jefferson, and Alice Lee Jefferson and their families.

Ilene and Fred were long time sweethearts. Good tennis friends in elementary school who grew to become sweethearts in high school. On December 25, 1944, while Fred was home on leave from the Navy, Ilene and Fred were married in Parsons, Kansas. In 1951 they moved with their two baby daughters to San Bernardino, Ca. where they joined up with Ilene’s parents Glen and Eva Bruch.

Ilene and Fred lived most of their lives in the same house, the same neighborhood, the same church for many many happy years. Ilene enjoyed her gardening. Her flowers were always the pretties flowers on the block. The whole family took delight on their trips to the mountains to camp, roasted marshmallows and sang songs by the campfire. They would go off to the Salton Sea for Easter in their little trailers or tent and would sleep under the stars. Ilene and Fred loved golfing, salmon fishing in Canada, traveling to Puerto Vallarta, and baby setting their precious grand kids and great grandkids. They adored them.

Ilene and Fred have a very wide circle of friends, church friends, golfing friends, beach friend from the trailer park in Oceanside, Norton Air Force Base friends, neighborhood friend, friends from Parsons, Kansas, as well as the Birthday Group that has met almost monthly for nearly 30 years, Tejon Ranch friends, and Ana who loved her Blonde. Many of these friends are here in this room today celebrating Ilene’s Life. Ilene was a energetic, compassionate, humorous, and loving friend.

Ilene will be missed by all that knew and loved her. But we know she is now at peace with her heavenly father, her best friend and lover Fredie, and her heavenly family. May she rest in peace.

A TRIBUTE TO MY MOTHER

These are a few short stories and some thoughts I had about my Mother that came to mind while I was with her the last few days we were together that I thought you might enjoy.

Mom was truly a good Christian. For many years she attended Del Rosa United Methodist Church in San Bernardino, CA., which was our family neighborhood church, and then attended Valley Baptist Church in Bakersfield, CA. which I introduced to Mom when she came to live with me in 2003 after she lost her home in the San Bernardino fires. Mom loved both churches and their members one as equally as the other. She loved the Lord and wanted to always read and learn more. Mom was active with both churches attending her Sunday school classes, church, enjoying after church lunches with the girls, teaching pre school children Sunday school classes, Bible school classes, Drum Ladies and being with the Balcony Lady’s group. She rarely missed church on Sunday’s. With the help from the Get Bus and Les who would take her to church when she missed her bus. The Get Bus drivers all knew her well. She was the cute little lady that always brought out treats for them. Never missed giving them cookies or candies.

Mom loved to shop and once a week would get her hair done. She always wanted to look proper from head to toe matching. From time to time I would get a call from the drivers “Hi Cyndie it’s Tuesdays I’m here at the shopping center looking for your Mom and can’t find her to take her home and I was just worried about her. I went to the hair dressers, to Albertson’s, to Longs Drugs, to Trader Joes, Burger King and asked them all if they knew where Ilene Jefferson was?” “Today its Tuesday you know Hair Day”. Every store in the shopping center knew Mom by her name Ilene. They would always tell me how much they just loved her including the Get Bus drivers who would eventually find her in one of the stores and take her home. You just couldn’t help but love her.

Mom has always loved working in her garden. Night or day, summer or winter you would find her out in the flower beds taking care of her flowers or pulling weeds. We paid a yard man to do all that but, she always went out any way to help them or more likely showed him how to prune the flowers properly. He still loved her and said he always enjoyed her help because she was so dog gone cute. Our house was always full of flowers. I will miss them.

She loved to read. She would always read the morning paper from cover to cover. If you ever wanted to know what was going on locally or world wide she knew it. She was up on her sports. After her accident that sent her to the hospital in critical condition for 5 days and then to Glenwood Gardens Assisted Living she had difficulty speaking more than 2 or 3 words at a time or concentrating on things for very long. One thing they did find was she loved to read especially out loud. So they put her to work entertaining the patients. They would put her out in front of the nurse’s station and give her a book to read and position the patients around Mom and she would read to them for hours. It always made her feel good to help others. Oh yes, she also never missed her Lakers games or the bull riding events on her TV. Yes bull riding. She would smile and cheer them on. We watch them together both the Lakers and the bull riding up to the very end. She was amazing. I will miss our evenings together.

I am so proud of my Mother. She wasn’t any movie star or rocket scientist; she wasn’t a doctor, or a lawyer. But, what she was; was a good, kind, loving, honest, caring person who loved everyone. She was my best friend, my counselor, my comforter, my loving Mother. I will miss her very much.

God gave me a Miracle before he came for her. He gave us two days with her that I will never ever forget. Two days of joy and laughter, two days of remembering how funny, how witty, how loving, how kind and caring of a person my Mother was. The first day my Mom woke up with a big huge smile on her face. She started talking right away to her helper “Good morning and how are you today? “ Now remember the aids have not heard my Mom speak more than a couple words at a time since the accident unless she was reading out of a book. Well she became the buzz of Glenwood. She didn’t stop talking that day till she fell asleep that night, with the same big smile on her face and woke up that next morning with that same smile. She was moving about freely as if her body had been reborn. Shaking people’s hands. Talking freely to every one including the Hospice helpers and the doctors, and the other patients; answering questions, making jokes, and teasing everyone just like she use to before the accident. Thank you, God. A story that will be told to others over and over again about the Miracle Lady they saw at Glenwood Gardens.

We will all miss, Ilene. But, now she is at peace with her new body. Walking freely through the field of flowers, along beside an ocean, holding hands with my Dad. Talking and walking with all of our heavenly family members and friends and Cody and Fluffy Kitty.

SHE IS FINALLY HOME. MAY YOU REST IN PEACE MOM. I WILL ALWAYS MISS YOU AND ALWAYS LOVE YOU.

Arrangements under the direction of Mish Funeral Home, Bakersfield, CA.