Lillian Willis

Lillian Willis, 101, passed away on July 2, 2012 at Oakridge Healthcare Facility in Roseville. She was born in Harvey, North Dakota on April 7, 1911 to George and Pauline (Patzer) Filler. She spent her childhood at the family farm in Anamoose, North Dakota.

In 1931 she met Horace Kenton Willis, and they were married in McClusky, North Dakota. They farmed in North Dakota and helped with the telephone business in Horace's family owned. They moved to California in 1936, where they lived in various towns, including Lodi, Thornton, Elk Grove, and finally in Stockton where they stayed and raised their nine children. In 1976, after working over 38 years for various canneries, Lillian retired from Del Monte cannery, and she and Horace moved to Roseville, and she resided there until her death.

Lillian loved her vegetable and flower gardens and she was famous for her many Christmas cookies and coffee cakes that she baked and shared with all her family. It was something everyone looked forward to receiving and she never disappointed them.

She is survived by her daughters, Phyllis Ryan of Sacramento; Evon Ybarra of Stockton; Frances Foster of Vacaville; and her sons, Stanley Willis and wife Nancy of Victorville; Jerry Willis of Stockton; Larry Willis of Stockton; and Roger Willis and his wife Sandy of Star Valley Ranch, Wyoming. She is also survived by 21 grandchildren and many great and great-great grandchildren, as well as many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Horace; her parents, her brothers, Herbert, Manuel, William and Reuben and her sister Martha; her son Charles Willis, her daughter Peggy Soto, her grandsons Paul Soto III and Richard Hodgson, and her two great-grandchildren Caleb Willis and Lauren Yarrow.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial gifts be made to a charity of your choice. A memorial service will be held at Mount Vernon Memorial Park on Thursday, July 5 at 12pm with a private internment to follow at a later date.