Obituary of Sheila Mary Stuart

Sheila Mary Stuart passed away peacefully in her sleep in her Santa Cruz home on May 24, 2013 one month after her 95th Birthday. She was born in Dublin, Ireland on April 24, 1918, the second of six children born to Timothy Downey and Eileen Tynan Downey. Her father was a teacher and Principal at Chapeizlaid School in Dublin and instilled in Sheila a life-long love of learning . Sheila attended National Public School (all Catholic) up to the 8th grade. A teacher skipped Sheila from kindergarten to second grade much to her older brother Brian's chagrin! She attended Dominican College for 3 years. She took an exam for the Irish Civil Service and went to work as a clerk at age 15 ½, riding her bicycle to work, many times through the Irish rain. The large family needed financial help and Sheila handed over her weekly pay check to her mother. She contracted tuberculosis at age 19 and was in hospital for the best part of a year, where they served medicinal Guinness! After returning to work she was transferred to the Aviation Department in Industry and Commerce and was personal secretary to Timothy O'Driscoll, Head of Aviation. During an International Aviation Conference in Dublin Castle, which was attended by all the European nations and world's major airlines, she worked at the information desk registering delegates and giving out information about Dublin. This was her first contact with Americans. She liked them immediately and they seemed to love the Irish lass with the smiling blue eyes. She made new friends who kept in contact with her for many years. She met John "Harry" Stuart in Dublin in 1945 when her then boyfriend brought her to a stag party. Harry was the only suitor with a car and quickly won her heart. Due to the Catholic-Protestant "religious problem," they were privately married with only Sheila's family in attendance. Sadly, Harry's father passed away not knowing that his son was married and that he had a grandson, Orin born in Dublin in 1947. Harry worked for Standard Oil Company in the West of Ireland, where Harry and Sheila lived in County Donegal. Another son, Oisin (pronounced O-sheen) was born prematurely in 1948 and died from crib death 3 months later in London where the family had moved in 1948 prior to their departure to India, where Harry, a mechanical engineer, built power plants in Calcutta. While there, daughter Orla was born in 1950. The family left India in 1954 and vacationed in Hong Kong. intending to head for Canada. However, Sheila's mother put her in contact with the "black sheep of the family," her uncle Stan Tynan, who had joined the United States Merchant Marine at 15, then settled in Felton, opening Summer cottage rentals. The family sailed to America on a freighter and entered the US through San Francisco in October 1954. The family spent several rough nights in the cottages where the temperature was 20°. The family enrolled Orin and Orla in Holy Cross Elementary School after moving to Santa Cruz in 1955. They rented a house and were joined by Sheila's sister Felicia. In 1956 they purchased a west- side home, where they would remain for the rest of their lives. Harry and Sheila joined the Pasatiempo Golf Club and enjoyed many happy years. Sheila served as President of the Pasatiempo 18-hole (and 19th hole!!!) Women's Club and won many trophies. Sheila was happy to see her children graduate from college. Orin was part of the first graduating class at UCSC in 1969. Orla graduated from California State University San Jose and Heald Business College in 1975. Sheila was active in many community organizations. She began in the late 1950s serving as both "room mother" at son's Orin's school and Cub Scout Den Mother. She was active in The Santa Cruz Symphony, where she was Co-President; Shakespeare Santa Cruz, where she served on the Board and saw it blossom in its first season and the League of Women Voters. She helped the League run a yearly wine tasting which featured wines of the Santa Cruz Mountains and for many years drove to Fremont to pick up souvenir wine glasses. Sheila and Harry became citizens in 1960. Her interest in politics was fueled by her love for fellow Irishman John Kennedy. Santa Cruz was very conservative at the time, but she walked precincts for Kennedy, handing out pamphlets. She and the children drove to San Jose to watch Kennedy's motorcade. She always remembered when he turned and smiled directly at her when she shouted the Irish greeting "cead mile failte" or "100,000 welcomes." She worked temporarily for County Clerk Tom Kelly in Elections Department then moved to permanent employment County Assessor for 11 years assisting with the Homeowner's Exemption Program after the passage of Proposition 13. An avid Democrat, Sheila ran several campaigns in Santa Cruz including Robert Kennedy's 1968 Presidential Primary, Gary Hart's Presidential bid and two campaigns for Dianne Feinstein. She helped Leon Panetta from his first Congressional campaign and later volunteered tirelessly for Sam Farr, as well as many other candidates and issues including the preservation of Lighthouse Field. Her home was opened to envelope-stuffing work groups and numerous fund-raisers for many years. After her retirement, she became active in Democratic Women's Club and The Santa Cruz County Democratic Central Committee, where she became the first Voter Services Chair and later DCC Co-Chair. She was honored as the first DCC " Democrat of the Year." She said one of her greatest achievements was turning her conservative husband into a liberal Democrat! Sheila and Harry enjoyed traveling. Vacations included returns to The Emerald Isle, Canada, New England, Germany, Hawaii. Mexico and the Western United States. Many happy mini-vacations were spent in the California Wine Country and Yosemite. Her last trip was to visit Orin in Sutter Creek where she toured Lake Tahoe and took in her first Minor League baseball game in Sacramento. For many years, the Stuart home was the scene for many dinner parties which ended with the tradition where each guest had to tell a joke, story, or sing a song, preferably Irish. Sheila was always "the life of the party" and known for "the gift of the gab." She loved to play bridge was an active player in several bridge groups until her health began to fail. She enjoyed her garden and watching the birds who enjoyed the bird feeders and baths. She enjoyed watching politics and baseball on TV, and always cheered on her beloved Dodgers and Athletics. Sheila is predeceased by her parents, Timothy and Eileen, son Oisin, husband Harry in1984; Brother Brian Downey, sisters Eileen Farrelly, Nuala Clancy, Emer Kocher and Felicia Downey. She is survived by son Orin and daughter-in-law Arlene of Sutter Creek; daughter Orla of Santa Cruz; grandchildren Jason, Nicole (Ian), Courtney (Ryan), and Trevor; three great-grandchildren, Sophia, Colton and Cayden, numerous nephews and nieces in Ireland and Canada, and many dear friends. A Mass of Christmas Burial will be held on Saturday, June 29 at 11 a.m. at Oakwood Memorial Chapel, 3301 Paul Sweet Road, Santa Cruz with a reception to follow at Oakwood Hall. In lieu of flowers, donations are preferred to The Land Trust of Santa Cruz (617 Water Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060); the Santa Cruz SPCA (PO Box 3800, Santa Cruz, CA 95063 ); O'Neill Sea Odyssey (2222 East Cliff Drive #222, Santa Cruz, CA 95062); Doctors Without Borders (333 7th Avenue, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10001-5004); Heartland Hospice of Santa Cruz (824 Bay Avenue, #40, Capitola, CA 95010-2104 ) or a charity of your choice.