Posted by Cathy Gowdy on Friday, July 21, 2006 at 05:07:50 :
San Francisco Chronicle
Sunday, March 24, 2002
A26
CHILES, Vivievne Caire - Former resident of Piedmont and Inverness; passed away after a brief illness on Feb. 25, 2002 in Grass Valley, CA. Born in Oakland to Frederic and Lillian Caire, Vivienne was a second generation Californian, whose grandfather was S.F. Bay Area pioneering entrepreneur, Justinian Caire. The youngest of five daughters, Vivienne grew up in the family home on the north side of Lake Merrit. She received her early education at Convent of the Holy Names, and attended both Piedmont High and Miss Ransome's, graduating from that school in 1928. She went on to UC Berkeley, where she was a member of Alpha Phi Sorority. For several years she was employed at U.C.'s Bancroft Library, where she worked with the eminent California historian, Dr. Herbert Priestly. She married John P. Chiles, descendant of a pioneering Sacramento Valley family, in Oakland on Dec. 14, 1940. During WW II, she moved to the East Coast to be closer to her Merchant Marine husband, who was commandeering Liberty Ship convoys across the Atlantic. After the War, she and John (now Port Captain for APL,) settled in rural New Jersey with their growing family. In 1957, they moved back to Piedmont with their five children, where they remained until 1977, when they retired to the West Marin town of Inverness. They were active parishioners of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Olema, and longtime Inverness Yacht Club members. Vivienne also belonged to the Inverness Garden Club, Alliance Francaise of the East Bay, California Historical Society, Women's Propeller Club, S.F. Town and Gown Club, and was a board member of the Santa Cruz Island Foundation. She was an avid and discerning reader, gardener, birder, and gourmet cook. Vivienne is survived by her children and their spouses: Mary B. & Charles Brock of Nevada City, CA.; Frederic & Jacky Chiles of London, England; James & Ruth Chiles of Stamford, CT.; John O. & Cyndy Chiles of Piedmont; and James McInerney of S.F; nine grandchildren; and sisters Marie and Helene Caire of Oakland. She was preceded in death by her husband of 59 years, John P, Chiles; her beloved daughter Catherine "Kitty" McInerney; and sisters Jeanne and Delphine Caire. Until 1937, Vivienne spent every summer with her family on Santa Cruz Island, the largest of the Channel Islands, off the Santa Barbara coast. The Island is now managed jointly by the Nature Conservancy and the National Park Service, but in the era of then- owner Justinian Caire and his immediate descendants, Santa Cruz was a "working ranch", and the time they spent there was treasured by the entire family. Vivienne never forgot those long, glorious summer months, when she, her siblings and her cousins, hiked, swam, and rode horseback to their hearts' content. Her Santa Cruz sojourns had a profound affect not only Vivienne's life, but ultimately on the lives of her children and grandchildren as well. They have inherited her fondness for, and appreciation of that unique 19th century Island "Rancho;" lying only 25 nautical miles off, but a world away from, the mainland of 21st century California. A Funeral Mass was said at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Olema on March 15. Memorial contributions may be made to: Friends of Santa Cruz Island, 79 Daily Dr.. Camarillo, CA 93010; Marin Agricultural Land Trust, P.O. Box 809, Pt. Reyes Sta, CA 94956.
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