Patricia Gwendolyn Gunderman

February 26, 1928 – January 3, 2023

Patricia Gwendolyn Murray Gunderman was born February 26, 1928, in Arcata, CA, Humboldt County. She passed away at the age of 94, on January 3, 2023, at Cameron Park, CA, El Dorado County after a brief illness. She was preceded in death by her husband Paul Gunderman and daughter Kim Gunderman Goeres LaRue. Patricia is survived by her daughters Dawn Coit, Julie Lydick (David), and April Roeseler (Gerry); grandchildren Matthew and Sean Coit, Thomas Lydick, Geoff Goeres, and Mariah Roeseler – Konoura; and great grandchildren Holden and Cameron Coit, Olive Coit, Stephen and Alexa Goeres, and Nathan Konoura.

Pat was an accomplished woman. She graduated from Arcata High School in 1944 at the age of 16, having started first grade when she was 4 years old. After high school, she joined her older sister Colleen, in the “International Sweethearts of Rhythm” band as a clarinetist, playing clubs throughout the United States. The all-female interracial band broke racial and gender barriers. She met many famous jazz artists of the period including Ella Fitzgerald and Benny Goodman. But, after a year in the band, she missed her home and returned to Arcata to further her education.

She attended Humboldt State University from 1945-1947 and then attended and graduated from Stanford University in 1948 with a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities. Upon graduation, she returned to Humboldt State University to complete a Teaching Certificate in 1950 and then taught at Blue Lake, Humboldt County.

Family life soon started. Pat met Paul Gunderman through her brother Laddie Murray. They married in Reno, NV, on September 1, 1951, and their daughter Kim was born in Arcata in 1952. In 1953, Paul joined the Pasadena Police Department. With a growing family, they bought a house in West Covina. Daughter Dawn arrived in 1954 and the surprise twins, April and Julie, were born in 1957. After the twins were born, Paul entered the California Highway Patrol (CHP) academy, graduating as Class Valedictorian. While Paul spent three months at the CHP academy, Pat was a solo parent, managing newborn twins and two children aged 5 and 3. Pat continued to manage a busy household while working part-time and furthering her education. She worked for the West Covina Unified School District from 1961-1964 and pursued her dream job as a librarian by taking library courses at Citrus Community College while working at the college's library from 1964-1965.

In 1965, Paul was promoted to Sargent, resulting in relocating to Shingle Springs, CA, which began their enduring interest in El Dorado County. Pat pursued her library career, serving as the Buckeye School District librarian from 1966-1968 and then worked her dream job as El Dorado County Librarian from 1969-1973. Paul had two additional promotions and in 1973 they headed to Los Banos, CA where he served as Captain. Ever resourceful, Pat returned to school to finish her Master of Arts in Librarianship. Her two older daughters no longer lived at home and the twins were seniors in high school so Pat lived with her Aunt in San Jose a few days a week, completing her Master’s degree from San Jose State University in 1975. Paul later became the Merced Area Commander, which led to Pat's second dream job from 1975-1985 at Merced Community College as Assistant Librarian and later as Library Director.

Retirement took Pat and Paul back to El Dorado County and Cameron Park where they built a home. While they called their five acres, "Gunderman Ranch," they mostly oversaw herds of deer, flocks of wild turkeys, and a granary tree, where the woodpeckers store their acorns.

Retirement was a period of many family gatherings as three daughters (Dawn and Julie in Cameron Park and April in Carmichael) and grandchildren lived nearby. Pat and Paul organized family beach vacations with their daughters and grandchildren in southern California. Pat and Paul also enjoyed traveling throughout their marriage. Pat dealt with the 1986 loss of Paul by traveling internationally for the next 17 years. Throughout, she maintained strong family connections with her daughters and grandchildren. She lived independently on the Cameron Park property for 38 years until her death. She inspired a love of reading and support for public libraries. Pat's long life was motivated by the lives of her children and grandchildren. She was always optimistic and curious to see how the next chapter would turn out.

A private memorial for immediate family and close friends of Patricia Gunderman will be held at her home on February 19, 2023.

Donations in the Memory of Patricia Gunderman may be made to the Friends of the Library of El Dorado County, Inc. 345 Fair Lane, Placerville, CA 95667.