Obituary of Mary Riege Bates

Mary Bates and her husband Cecil Bates came to Santa Cruz on their honeymoon in June, 1946, and never left. Mary died peacefully at her home in Aptos after a long illness on Friday morning, September 13. She was with her daughter Mary Guild, and one of her loving caregivers, Pacencia Sullano, throughout the night, and at the end. Mary was born in Fresno on November 21, 1923, to Ben and Mary Riege. Her family spent many summers in Santa Cruz as she grew up, a tradition for many Fresno refugees from the valley heat. She attended Fresno State College, where she swam competitively. Mary and Cecil began their life in Santa Cruz as owner-managers of the Drake Hotel, a lower Pacific Avenue relic long since demolished. She helped establish the family beef by-product business on the site now occupied by Longs Marine Lab, and worked long hours keeping the books for that business, as well as Cecil's new endeavors in stock brokerage. She still found time to act as a Brownie leader and Cub Scout den mother, actively participated in PTA's, sang in the Congregational Church choir, and competed in a Capitola bowling league. After her family, Mary's second passion was travel. The family saw most of the country, often by station wagon. Somehow, Arizona in the summer was still fun in the days before air conditioning was standard. Other trips included a banana freighter through the Panama Canal, which enjoyed a brush with a tropical hurricane. After the kids were grown, Mary and Cecil expanded their travels, in part helped by Mary's new career as a travel agent. They visited every continent, some several times, and had traveling friends from Santa Cruz to Fresno to Norway to Japan. After Cecil's death in 2001, Mary's son and daughter-in-law Phil and Kathryn built a guest cottage at their Aptos home where Mary lived the rest of her days. She enjoyed frequent visits with her family, including two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. In the last few years, she was constantly supported by the great ladies referred to her by Florence Kuo's Home Healthcare Service, including Pacencia Sullano, Naty DeMayo, and Visitacion Carza, as well as her long-time friend Francisca Cruz. Mary is survived by daughter and son-in-law Mary and Peter Guild, son and daughter-in-law Phil and Kathryn Bates, grandchildren Elizabeth McLean (Dave) and Evan Bates (Kristina), great-grandchildren Finley and Malia McLean and Evan Philip and Gabriella Bates, her sister Doris Taylor, and her spoiled but faithful Cavalier Spaniel, Winston. She was interred next to Cecil at Santa Cruz Memorial Park in a small family gathering. The family appreciates any gifts by Mary's friends to the charities of their choice.