Posted by Newspaper Transcriber on Saturday, October 21, 2006 at 17:44:43 :

Clarissa (Clara) Patricia Faria

Clarissa Patricia Faria, who was called Clara and who was the mother of Veronica Faria and Beverly Hawkes of Half Moon Bay, died quietly May 13 at age 86 at Three Bells in Montara, where she had lived for nearly two years.

Mrs. Faria was born Aug. 14, 1919, in New Bedford, Mass., to Manuel F. and Mary Olinda Aguiar. She married her husband, Joseph D. Faria, on June 26, 1940, in Reno, Nev. They were married for 64 years, and lived in Newark for 63 years before moving to Fremont in September 2003. Following her husband's death, Mrs. Faria moved to Three Bells in October, 2004.

She worked in strawberry fields in Centerville, Calif., cut apricots every year with her children, and worked part-time in a Newark cleaners. She also volunteered, at a local thrift store and as a "Pink Lady" at Washington Hospital.

Mrs. Faria enjoyed her children and great-grandchildren. She loved knitting, crocheting, working in her garden and providing slips of flowers and plants to friends around the Bay Area. A bird lover, she raised canaries for years. She and her husband belonged to a ballroom dance group that danced in San Jose and San Leandro, and they also enjoyed frequent trips to Reno.

Mrs. Faria was also a member of St. Edward's Catholic Church and longtime member of the Sociedade Portuguesa Rainha Santa Isabel Council 58 of Newark.

Mrs. Faria was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph, in 2004, her sons Lionel in 2005 and James in 1959 and nephew John Edward Meeks in 1994.

She is survived by daughters Patricia (and husband Ken) Kraft of Green Valley, Ariz. and Veronica Faria of Half Moon Bay, her son Richard Faria of Concord and adopted daughter Beverly Hawkes of Half Moon Bay, daughters-in-law JoAnn Faria and Julie Faria, six grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

She is also survived by many nieces, nephews and cousins, and special friends Jeannette Guthrie, Susan Bell, Mary Martins and Annie Nunes.

A memorial Mass will be celebrated June 1 in Newark, followed by burial in Fremont. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude's Children's Research, 1 St. Jude Place Bldg., P.O. Box 3704, Memphis, Tenn., 38173, or to the Macular Degeneration Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 531313, Henderson, Nev., 89053.

Half Moon Bay Review and Pescadero Pebble, Wednesday, May 31, 2006