Doris Janine Blackey died on January 12, 2019, in Thousand Oaks, in the company of her
beloved daughter and granddaughters. Doris was born February 14, 1930 in Lewiston, Maine, to
Gerard Chouinard and the former Yvonne Lizotte. Raised in the nearby mill town of Lisbon, she
and her family moved to Southern California in 1946 in search of a better life and warmer
winters. As a teen and young adult Doris designed hats and dreamed of becoming a costume
designer; surviving sketches attest to her talent. Throughout her life she was a creative force, at
times painting, sculpting, decorating and landscaping, always eager to try her hand at something
new. Her family and friends remember her best for her generosity, spirit and kindness. And she
was funny. The stories she told out of her own life would spin to their wry end with perfect
timing. She married Donald Blackey, whose energy and generosity matched her own, on June
30, 1951. Both Doris and Don had the gift of accepting family and friends as they are with
affection and without judgment: during their 56 years together their home was central to the life
of their extended families. In 1977 they bought a former orange grove at the edge of Chatsworth,
moved a house there and built a barn. After Don's death in 2008, Doris continued their five decade
sundowner tradition by inviting friends and neighbors on Twin Oaks Lane over for crab
legs and margaritas. Our wonderful matriarch is survived by her daughter Kimberly (Roger)
Binon, granddaughters Danielle (Matt) Kovacevich and Victoria (Kurtis) Orduno and three
great-grandchildren, all of Thousand Oaks, her brother Yvon (Malinda) Chouinard of Ventura,
and numerous nieces and nephews.
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