Mrs. Paulette "Tootsie" Rae (Henry) Collis

Paulette was born February 19, 1950, in Buffalo, New York, to Bernice and William Henry.

She and her older sisters, Barbara and Mary, lived in Hamburg (near Buffalo) until the family moved west, settling in Chula Vista, California. It was during her early years in Hamburg where Paulette acquired her lifelong love of dogs and interest in absorbing the stories from individuals of an older generation. And Mrs. Fox who lived next door to their Center Street home had many to tell her.

Paulette attended Castle Park High School in Chula Vista where she met the love of her life, the late Patrick Joseph Collis. While her husband to be became a standout starting lineman for the varsity football team Paulette joined the Trojan Brigade as a Trojanette, which cheered enthusiastically for their football heroes. She eventually won Pat’s heart although she had to divert his attention away from a Ford Mustang to do so.

Pat and Paulette were married at 9 am, November 8, 1969 in Chula Vista. To this day many people who attended the wedding are still talking of the celebration that took place afterward.

During the first eight years of marriage their weekends were spent waterskiing with friends on San Diego Bay, exploring the southwest, and camping in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. They became known to family and close friends as “Tootsie and Wally.” For a while they lived in a house on H Street in Chula Vista that was rumored to be “haunted” but their dog, Bach, kept the ghost at bay.

On November 29, 1977, Paulette gave birth to her son Joseph Walter Collis and on December 2, 1979, to her daughter Laura Rae Collis. They became the joy and center of Paulette’s and Pat’s lives. Laura recently said that, “My Mum did everything right without an instruction book.”

Between the births of their children Pat and Paulette moved to what became their family home on Plaza Mar. Over the passing years that home grew to be the center of many social gatherings of local and distant friends and family members. Paulette enjoyed hosting the visits from her parents; her sister Mary and husband Gary Walker with their son Tony from Damascus, Oregon; her sister Barbara and her husband Ken Conklin and their children Bill, Michele, Dale, Kristi and Tim from Los Angeles, and various aunts, uncles, cousins, and nephews from the Henry and Collis families. When their children got older Pat and Paulette enjoyed trips to Las Vegas where they enjoyed the nightlife offered there. On those trips Paulette could be seen at the blackjack table staring intently at the hand she was dealt deciding if holding them or taking a hit was the right tactic at the moment.

Paulette worked most of her life in the medical field in an administrative capacity where she met many cherished lifelong friends including Caroline North and Helen Putman

In 2016, after Pat passed, Paulette moved to Yuma, Arizona, but returned often to the San Diego area to visit. She also visited Caroline at her home in Playa de Rosarito in Baja California, Mexico. Several times Paulette travelled to the Portland, Oregon area to visit with her sister Mary and family. And, in 2017, she and Caroline came east to tour Washington, D.C., and visit with her sister Barbara and family in Daleville, Virginia.

Paulette has left her family and friends stories that will be recounted and expanded upon in the coming days, months and years. Those stories and experiences will be remembered with love by her son Joseph Walter Collis and daughter Laura Rae Osborne; sister Mary Lou Walker and her husband Gary of Gresham, Oregon; sister Barbara Shirley Conklin and her husband Ken of Daleville, Virginia; nephew Bill Sprouse and partner Colleena of Portland, Oregon; nephew Tony Walker, his wife Lea, and their children Roxanne and Jayden of Gresham, Oregon; the Osborne family, and many nieces and nephews. And, when he gets old enough, those same stories will be lovingly shared with Paulette’s grandson, Joseph Patrick Collis.

The viewing of Paulette Rae Collis will be held at the Chapel of the Roses at Glen Abbey in Bonita, California, on Monday July 13th from 5pm to 9pm. Paulette Rae Collis will be laid to rest at Glen Abbey Tuesday July 14th at 11am. Covid-19 social distancing protocols will be in place.

Those who cannot attend will raise a glass in remembrance of this sweet cherished woman.