Ann Marie Shidler McKellar

home with family surrounding her.

Ann was born on December 21, 1931, In Visalia, California. She graduated from Visalia Union High School in 1949. Many of her classmates, the “49ers,” remained close friends throughout their lives, gathering weekly. Ann continued her education at College of the Sequoias, and then attended, and received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon, where she was a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority.

Ann began her rewarding teaching career in Merced, she also held teaching jobs in Ventura, and Japan (U.S. Air Force Base), that was the start of her love to travel. Ann lived in Mexico City for 9 years, where her 3 daughters were born: Cristina, Denise, and Diana. In 1969, she and the girls returned to Visalia, where she became a teacher at Sundale Union School, in Tulare. She taught 2nd and 3rd grades at Sundale from 1969 until she retired in 1993.

Ann had many interests: She was a voracious reader, writing down every book she read at a rate of two per week. She was in a bowling league, spending many Saturdays at Visalia’s local bowling alley, where she earned her 300 pin. She loved watching professional sports and could often be found glued to a Laker game, an Oakland A’s game or watching tennis, whether in person or on TV. She loved to cook, mastering many dishes, especially desserts, which satisfied her “sweet tooth.” She also learned the art of cake decorating, often making cakes for special occasions. She enjoyed gardening and raising Dahlias, which were her favorite. Traveling was also a passion of hers. She took many wonderful vacations within the United States but most were abroad. Wherever she went, it had to be somewhere that was educational and interesting and somewhere she had never been. Her travels included more than 20 countries in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. In the summer of 1976, she and her three young girls packed the car and headed to the east coast for our country’s Bicentennial. Of course, Ann planned the 30 day trip, and the many educational stops along the way. This is a trip her daughters will never forget.

Ann was a member of AAUW (since 1969), Bridge Club, Garden Club, Travel Club, Square Dancing, Book Club, the Tulare County Symphony League, Christian Women’s Club, the Sierra Club and others. At home, she was a fierce competitor in board games, and anyone that played with her knew she meant “business”. Her favorites were Scrabble, Boggle or any other word games. She had a vocabulary that was unmatched, and let’s just say, the dictionary was often needed if you dared to challenge one of her Scrabble words.

Ann is survived by her loving and adoring husband of 14 years, Bob McKellar; her 3 daughters, Cristina (Ben) Blankenship of Visalia, Denise (Rocky) Bowen of Oklahoma, and Diana (David) Wooden of Signal Hill, CA.; 6 grandchildren, Morgan and Eric Blankenship, Austin and Jared Gragg, and Elijah and Isabella Wooden; Ann’s 2 nieces, Debbie Janzen and Lisa Nichols, and nephew Kurt Shidler; and 9 great grandchildren. Ann is preceded in death by her parents, W.L. “Bill” and Nita J. Shidler, and her brother, Jim Shidler.

Ann’s family would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation for her wonderful caretakers; Julie Knight, Brittney Deaver, Nicci Rocha, Debby Mustin, Trish Deaver, Amparo Perez, and Rayna Souza. They took great care of Ann and let her know they cared deeply for her and they felt like part of the family.

A visitation for Ann will be at Miller Memorial Chapel, in Visalia, on Friday, February 11, 2022 from 4PM to 7PM. Graveside services will be held on Saturday, February 12, 2022 at 10:30AM, at the Visalia District Cemetery. Friends are invited to attend. A reception and luncheon will immediately follow at the Hall of Fame Club, located at the Visalia Rawhide Ballpark, (appropriate, since Ann loved baseball) located at 300 N. Giddings Street.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.millerchapel.com for the family. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made in Ann’s honor to Valley Children’s Hospital or Farmer Bob’s World.