Mrs Becky Ann Shay's Obituary
Becky A. Shay, 65, passed away on January 4, 2014 in Highland, California after a lengthy battle with cancer.
She was born in Arcadia, California on January 17th, 1948 to Irwin and Lela Clifton. She graduated from high school in Sacramento in 1966, and obtained an Associates Degree, majoring in Psychology. She was widely traveled, having lived in Japan, Canada, and up and down the breadth of California in her lifetime. Becky's first marriage was to Timothy L. Shay in 1971, and they had two children, Kimberly and Thomas. She was a gifted tole painter and an avid crafter, creating hand-painted Christmas ornaments to order and teaching classes in local shops. She was widowed in 1991 and raised her two teenage children on her own. She began work for the Planning and Engineering Section of the then California Department of Forestry (now CALFIRE) and continued until her retirement in 2000. Becky moved to Canada and remarried Michael G. Bondar in 2001, starting up a Bed and Breakfast in Ontario near Georgian Bay with her husband and daughter. Concerns for her mother's health moved her and Mike back to Highland in the fall of 2003, and she had been enjoying retirement with travel, painting and family since then. She was diagnosed in September of 2012 with a rare strain of liver cancer and fought bravely well past her prognosis with all the strength and grace she had demonstrated throughout her life. Becky looked after her family until the very last, celebrating Christmas surrounded by her loved ones and ringing in the New Year.
She is survived by her beloved husband Michael, her two children: Kimberly A. Shay of Riverside, CA; Thomas L. Shay of Beaumont, CA. She is also survived by her mother, two granddaughters and other extended family, who will miss and love her every day for being an exemplary woman, mother and wife.
What’s your fondest memory of Becky?
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Share a story where Becky's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Becky you’ll never forget.
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