Coronado Family Reunion - 1973 - Additional Photos

The previous post described the happy Coronado Family Reunion of 1973 in Napa and provided a photo of seven of the 10 Coronado brothers and sisters who were able to attend.  Catherine McIntosh took the photo and sent me two other photos that she took at the same event, memorializing other relatives who attended.  I remember seeing these photos and others taken at the reunion, but my growing family and I were living on the East Coast and we were not able to attend.

These are the sons and daughters of the "10" who were able to attend the 1973 reunion:

Standing left to right: Robert McIntosh, Paul Orsi, Gary Coronado, Bob Coronado.

Seated left to right: Harrison McIntosh, Helen Coronado Jenkins, Dorothy Coronado McKenna

Robert and Harrison McIntosh are sons of Hess Coronado McIntosh.  Paul Orsi is the son of Marian (Toots) Orsi.  Helen Jenkins is the daughter of Marion (Dutch) Coronado.  Dorothy McKenna is the daughter of Dolph Coronado.

This photo includes the grandchildren of the "10" who were present at the reunion:

I can identify 4 of the 6 people in this photo, but I don't recognize the girl standing on the left or the boy seated in the middle.  Claudia McKenna Moelk is standing in the center with Gerri Eichler Handschumacher next to her on the right.  Seated on the left is Juanita Coronado Lecair and seated on the right is Catherine McIntosh.  [Update: Jim Orsi recently says the girl in the upper left is his sister, Julie Orsi Rus, and the boy in front center is his brother, Jeff Orsi.  Jim, Julie and Jeff are children of Paul and Betty Orsi.]

Claudia is the daughter of Dorothy McKenna and granddaughter of Dolph Coronado.  Gerri is the daughter of Lillian Eichler and granddaughter of Dolph Coronado.  Juanita is the daughter of Marion Coronado and granddaughter of Dutch Coronado.  Catherine is the daughter of Harrison McIntosh and granddaughter of Hess Coronado McIntosh.

This is a more informal photo of the reunion showing the side yard and extent of the tables set up in Helen's yard for the 1973 reunion.

Surrounding the table are Robert & Helen McIntosh, Al Orsi (husband of Toots), Harrison McIntosh, Frank Coronado and Helen Coronado Jenkins.

In Memoriam

This is a celebration of the lives of 3 remarkable Coronado family members.  They enriched not only our family but the lives of those around them.  I miss them all.

Harrison McIntosh

In an earlier posting I reported on my cousin Harrison McIntosh, an internationally known ceramicist, who celebrated his 100^th Birthday in September 2014.  We visited him, his wife Marguerite, and his daughter, Catherine, and her family in Claremont, California in October 2014.  We had a wonderful time – it was like a mini family-reunion.  Harrison was in great spirits, clearly remembered a lot of family stories, and enjoyed discussing the details of making ceramics with my son, David.

Harrison died of natural causes on January 21, 2016 in Claremont at the age of 101.

He was born in Vallejo, California, on September 11, 1914.  While in high school in Stockton, California, Harrison and his brother, Robert, developed an interest in art – Robert enjoyed drawing and painting, while Harrison pursued sculpture.  After the McIntosh family moved to Los Angeles in 1937, Harrison set up a studio in his parent’s garage and took ceramics classes beginning in 1940.

HARRISON MCINTOSH
September 11, 1914 - January 21, 2016

Harrison’s education and training was interrupted when he was drafted in 1944.  Around the same time, Harrison’s first wife fell ill and died.

After he was discharged from the Army, Harrison used the G.I. Bill to gain admission as a special student to study ceramics at the Claremont Graduate School.  He met a French student, Marguerite Loyau, while studying at Claremont and they were married in 1952.  In 1958, they built a home in Padua Hills, nestled in the foothills above Claremont, with a pottery studio where Harrison would work for the next 50 years.

Harrison’s work is represented in more than 40 museum collections worldwide and his pieces have been featured in 70 publications.[1]

Betty Orsi

The wife of my cousin and godfather Paul Orsi, Betty Greeott Orsi died peacefully in the presence of her family on October 24, 2015 in Ukiah, California.  She was 83 years old.

BETTY GREEOTT ORSI
April 16, 1932 - October 24, 2015

Betty was born 16 April 1932 in Santa Rosa, California, but grew up in Ukiah, California.  It was in Ukiah that she and Paul met and were married in 1953.  I attended the wedding as a youngster and remember how beautiful Betty was and how Paul was so handsome.  Betty and Paul ran Paul’s Grocery Store in Ukiah.  Later she became Director of Medical Records at Hillside Hospital, now Ukiah Valley Medical Center.  She was actively involved with St. Mary’s of the Angel Catholic Church as organist and, eventually music director.

Betty is survived by her husband of 62 years, Paul; her five children, Janet Orsi, James Orsi, John Orsi, Julie Orsi Rus, Jeffrey Orsi; and 9 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.[2]

Sister Catherine Pelletier

I was recently informed[3] that my godmother, Sister Catherine Pelletier, had passed away on 6 June 2016 at Mercy Retirement and Care Center in Oakland, California at the age of 93.  She was born 2 March 1923 in Fresno, one of seven children.  Catherine grew up in Oakland.  She attended Notre Dame High School in Alameda, California, and entered the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur community in 1943.[4]

SISTER CATHERINE PELLETIER
March 2, 1923 - June 6, 2016

Not only was Sister Catherine my godmother, but my mother was her godmother.  It must have been fate that brought Catherine into the Coronado clan, for her mother walked up to my mother, Cecelia Coronado, in church and asked her – a total stranger – to stand in as the godmother for Catherine’s baptism.  Our lives were intertwined ever since.

Catherine was a Sister of Notre Dame for 73 years.  She taught at several elementary schools for thirty years and after earning a master of library studies degree, served as librarian for Notre Dame High School in San Jose, California, and as librarian for the College of Notre Dame in Belmont, California.[5]  I remember visiting Sister Catherine many times over the years and she was always so wonderful to be around.  She attended two of our son’s weddings, one in California and one on the East Coast.

Our world is richer for their lives and poorer with their deaths.

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[1] American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA), 21 Jan 2016, press release; Suzanne Muchnic, Harrison McIntosh, Southland artist who pushed ceramics’ boundaries, dies at 101, Los Angeles Times, January 22, 2016, online obituary.

[2] Funeral memorial booklet for Betty Orsi funeral services, 3 Nov 2015.

[3] Letter from Mary Anne Pelletier Moore, 1 Aug 2016, sister of Sister Catherine Pelletier.

[4] San Francisco Chronicle, 13 Jun 2016, online obituary.

[5] Ibid.

Harrison McIntosh Turns 100 - A Special Day

It is rare that a genealogical blog, steeped in the past, has the opportunity to celebrate a living family member whose past, whose life and whose present has brought renown to the family.  This is the focus of today’s posting, where we celebrate the One Hundredth Birthday of Harrison McIntosh, our famous California ceramic artist.

Those of you who have followed the family relationships will remember the recent posts in which I discussed the courtship and 1913 wedding of Harry McIntosh and Jesusita (Hess) Coronado, the eldest daughter of Marion & Louisa Coronado.

The newly married couple settled in Vallejo where Harry worked as a musician and then for the Sperry Flour Company.  Two sons were born to the young couple, Harrison (born: 11 Sep 1914) and Robert (born: 11 Mar 1916).  Both sons would grow up and mature professionally in Vallejo, Stockton and the Los Angeles area to become internationally known artists.  Harrison would concentrate on ceramic arts while Robert would become a portrait, landscape and movie animation artist.

Today cousin Harrison is celebrating his 100^th Birthday.[1]  I send my best wishes to him and wish him many more years.[2]

We visited Harrison four years ago at his home in southern California and toured his former home and studio in Padua Hills in Claremont, California.  Although his eyesight is fading, his alertness and memory are as sharp as a youngster.

As a testament to his life and professional career I have assembled photos[3] that show Harrison over the years.

Brothers Robert & Harrison McIntosh - 1926 (Photo Credit: James Coronado)

Juanita Coronado (wife of James), Hess, Harrison, Harry, Juanita Coronado (daughter of Juanita on the left), Robert - 1926 (Photo Credit: James Coronado)

Family Photo - Harry McIntosh, Hess, Harrison, Louisa Coronado (grandmother of Harrison & Robert), Robert - 1941 (Photo Credit: James Coronado)

Harrison McIntosh applies brush work to a large bowl in his studio in Claremont, CA - 1953

Harrison McIntosh at his potter's wheel - 1966 (Photo Credit: Sam Calder)

Harrison McIntosh in his studio - 1977

Harrison McIntosh in his Padua Hills studio - 1992 (Photo Credit: Marguerite McIntosh)

Harrison McIntosh in his retrospective exhibition at the American Museum of Ceramic Art in 2010  (Photo Credit: Catherine McIntosh)

Harrison McIntosh celebrates his upcoming 100th Birthday with his wife Marguerite at a family lunch in Claremont, CA in August 2014  (Photo Credit: Catherine McIntosh)

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[1] Harrison’s brother, Robert, passed away in 2010 at the age of 94.

[2] The American Museum of Ceramic Art, in conjunction with the Claremont Museum of Art, is presenting a special exhibition, HM100: A Century through the life of Harrison McIntosh, from September 13 to October 26, 2014.  For information: http://www.amoca.org/hm100/

[3] Photos assembled with the assistance of his daughter, Catherine McIntosh.