Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma

Georgia Olivia Crites

Georgia Olivia Crites, 88, passed away at her home in Fallbrook on Dec. 14, 2007.

She had been in declining health since a fall and head injury in May of 2005. She had remained mentally alert in spite of her body becoming frail. She lived in Fallbrook for 44 years.

Georgia was born May 29, 1919 in Paragould, AK. She was the oldest child of George Webster and Mary Opal Madden.

Her brother, Fred Madden, preceded her in death. Her sister, Pauline Wilkerson, resides in Casa Grande, AZ.

Georgia spent part of her childhood in Gillette, WY. She often rode her horse bareback to the one-room schoolhouse she attended. After moving with her family to West Plains, MO, she met and married her future husband Othel Crites, who was a well-known local musician. Othel died in 1991, just weeks shy of their 56th wedding anniversary.

Their union produced seven children: Lawrence Crites, Las Vegas; Catherine Woodrey, Bonsall, CA; Carol Catania, Fallbrook; Connie Blea, Fallbrook (Connie preceded her mother in death in 1999); Ramona Maiman, Solana Beach, CA; Naomi Garcia, Valley Center, CA; and Rebecca Medearis, Vista, CA. She is also survived by 21 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren.

Most of Georgia’s life was spent as a homemaker, but she enjoyed being able to enter the workforce after her children were grown. She worked at the Grand Tradition, which she really enjoyed.

She was also proud to have been a volunteer Pink Lady with the Fallbrook Hospital Auxiliary for more than 13 years. Georgia was also a member and officer of the Fallbrook Moose Lodge and, along with her husband, was involved with the Fallbrook VFW.

Georgia’s life was filled with music and art. It wasn’t uncommon for her home to be filled with musician friends playing country/western music. She enjoyed accompanying her husband to all the various musical venues where he played, from Camp Pendleton to Los Angeles and San Diego.

She also studied art and ceramics with notable Fallbrook artists, having inherited a talent for art from her father, a scenic painter. She produced a large body of creative artwork, much of it having been left with her family.

The fulfillment of one of Georgia’s lifelong dreams was a trip to the Hawaiian Islands with some of her family for her 75th birthday. She experienced her first plane ride and was treated to an in-flight birthday song led by the planes pilot and crew.

Georgia remained self-sufficient and able to do her volunteer work up until the last few years. She enjoyed her family and her much-loved shopping trips to secondhand stores until the very end of her life.

Services will be held Friday, December 21, at 11 a.m. at Christ The King Lutheran Church. Donations may be made to Christ The King Lutheran Church, 1620 S. Stage Coach Lane, Fallbrook, CA 92028.

Aloha, Georgialani… until we meet again…

 

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