Marie Josephine Grimes

Marie was born in Compton, CA in 1949, then moved with her family to San Pablo, California in 1957. She first saw her husband-to-be John Grimes at Dover Elementary School when he was appointed "milk monitor" (a student who delivered milk to each classroom for lunch). He caught her attention because she noticed he had "kind eyes". Years later, she got to know John a little better while working at Flip's Hamburgers. He asked her for date, and the rest is history. They married June 3, 1967. Daughter Lisa Marie Grimes arrived in 1969 and daughter LeAnna Marie Grimes arrived in 1972. The family moved to Redding in 1969 when John accepted a job with the Redding Police Department.

When Marie developed interstitial cystitis (IC), she tried for ten years to get Readers Digest to write a story about the disease. They finally said, "OK, you write it"... so she did. She also spoke at an IC convention in San Diego and over the years spen many nights giving a listening ear and informational support to other women struggling with the condition. Mare also gathered information for and published a resource information guide which helped people with many kinds of difficulties find the local, state, and national resources available to them. She was also known for her tremendous friendships with and support of Vietnam veterans - especially those dealing with issues related to Agent Orange.

Marie is survived by her daughters Lisa (husband Jeff Cerepa) and LeAnna (husband Shaun Avery) and by her grandchildren Austin, Katelyn, Hannah, and Zachary. She is also mourned by her siblings Richard Wholer, Thomas Wholer, Margaret Jenkins, Irene Hollister, Patricia Porter, John Thatcher, and Ben Jetton. She is predeceased by her loving husband, John Grimes, and her brother Mike Kirk.