Olive Merrill Britt, beloved mother, sister, and wife, passed away peacefully from heart failure on March 26 at her residence in Ventura, California, 97 ½ years to the day from her birth. Olive was a resident of Ventura for over 50 years.
Olive was born on September 26, 1923, on a small farm near Iuka, Mississippi. The eldest of five children, she was predeceased by her parents, James and Maude Merrill, by her husband, George Britt, by her siblings, James, Jr., Richard (“Dicky”), and Ruby Tradii, and by her daughter, Wilma Merrill Flores. Olive is survived by her sister Virginia Bonbrisco, and by her two sons, John and Jeffrey Britt.
Olive served in the U.S. Army during WWII and earned the rank of Staff Sergeant. While in the Army, she unofficially learned to drive a Sherman tank, which she loved doing. She was proud of her military service and stayed committed to veterans’ causes until her death. She was a member of American Legion Post 393 in Ventura. For many years, she volunteered at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center, helping and comforting the veterans who were terminally ill, and veterans who were suffering from AIDs. Olive’s gentle and positive demeanor eased their pain. Beginning in 1991, she also started volunteering to work at the Ventura County Stand Down, held each year at the National Guard Armory in Ventura, where she enjoyed distributing boots and shoes to homeless veterans.
Immediately before volunteering to serve in the Army, Olive worked at the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, DC. She had a top-secret security clearance and was an excellent typist. Consequently, she was given the job of typing the transcripts of translations of Hitler’s speeches. The FCC was not anxious to lose her, and she had to apply several times before she was allowed to join the Army.
Olive’s favorite job, however, was her first job. From the age of four until she was 17, she worked with her father, painting houses and hanging wallpaper. Well into her late-70s, Olive could, and would, climb a ladder to paint the side of a house. Until March 2020, she took Tai Chi classes five days a week, which she thoroughly enjoyed.
Olive was unique; anyone who ever met her never forgot her. She was open and loved people, and she was non-judgmental. Nonetheless, she was clear-eyed, saw through phoniness, and called things like she saw them. She had fight and grit, and she was absolutely fearless. In fact, she was so tough that she decided to have a knee replacement when she was 92. She died like she lived her life—iron-willed and on her own terms. She refused morphine because she wanted to remain conscious and completely aware until the end.
Olive’s epitaph encapsulates her essence: “Keep Stepping.” She will always be remembered and loved, and a celebration of her life will be held when COVID-19 permits.
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