Jon Severt Rierson

Jon was born in Spencer, Iowa to Anna and Albert Rierson and spent his childhood on a farm outside Ruthven. His family moved to Southern California in 1953, after winning a vacation with the magazine The Country Gentleman that saw them road trip across 8 states, accompanied by photographers. Shortly after the move, Jon contracted polio and spent a year recuperating in hospital—a formative experience that he would later regularly recount. After his recovery, he attended Santa Monica High School and Santa Monica City College before graduating from UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in engineering. He and Rosalind married in 1964 and had two children, Debbie and Mitch. Jon began his career with Standard Oil (Chevron) in telecommunications, based in La Mirada. His work later took him on travels to other states and to offshore oil rigs, and also relocated him and his family several times, including to Taft, Bakersfield, and San Francisco. He retired from the Chevron research lab in La Habra in 1992. In retirement, he and Rosalind traveled extensively. They took regular trips to Catalina Island and the other Channel Islands, with a memorable kayak trip to Santa Cruz Island. They also embarked on two cross-country road trips to Nova Scotia in 2002 and 2005, with stops in many states along the way. Another favorite destination was Disneyland, initially to visit their kids at work and, later, to enjoy quiet weekdays and Frontierland’s Big Thunder Ranch.

Jon had a life-long fascination with technology and innovation. Ham radio was an early interest for him, and he kept his license active for his entire life. He could often be found ‘puttering’, as he expertly fixed and tinkered with all sorts of technology around the house; he had a particular soft spot for the old garden tractor that he kept while living in La Habra Heights. His interests were also shaped by his being raised on a farm, and he subsequently had many pets and farm animals throughout his life, from big (horses and ponies) to small (baby ducks, hatched in the oven). To his family, he may be best known for both his love of telling stories—of growing up on a farm and life in snowy winters, his time in hospital next to a boy in an iron lung, or his engineering work and the travels that took him on—and for his excellent Swedish rice pudding, which he regularly made for holidays.

Jon will be lovingly remembered by his wife of 58 years, Rosalind; his children: Debbie and Mitch (Julie); his grandchildren: Rebecca (Aaron) and Sarah (Austin); and his brothers: Walt, Mike, and Tom. He is preceded in death by his parents, Albert and Anna.

The family wishes to send a special thank you for their care and compassion to the oncology nurses at Kaiser Panorama City over many years, as well as thanks to the staff on floor 4 at Kaiser’s Irvine Medical Center and to Compassionate Care Hospice.