Maybelle Helene Rasmussen's Obituary
Maybelle Helene (Petersen) Rasmussen of Hayward, CA., passed away on October 3, 2022 at the age of 104. Maybelle was born and raised in Hayward, the eldest of three sisters growing up in the house her father built at the corner of Grove Way and Montgomery Ave., in the area called Cherryland. After high school at Hayward High, she attended San Jose State College receiving a B.A. degree and an elementary teaching credential. Her first teaching jobs were in Monterey and Santa Barbara. In 1943 she met, and was betrothed to, Lloyd Rasmussen. They were married in 1946 after Lloyd spent three years in the South Pacific during the war. After the war they settled back in Hayward where Maybelle continued teaching. Their daughter, Susan Gail, who was to have her own teaching career of over 30 years, was born in 1947. Maybelle went on to teach at John Muir, Harder, Winton, Bret Harte, and finally La Vista junior high, retiring in 1976 after a 31 year teaching career. Lloyd, an executive with the William J. Wrigley Co., passed away in 1984. Maybelle kept herself busy with her many interests. She played the piano since age ten and well past her 100th birthday she could sit down and play beautifully. She was an accomplished ‘plein air’ water color painter and over the years painted scores of landscapes in and around the east bay hills and the mountains above Sonora near the family cabin in Mi Wuk Village. Always a joiner and leader, Maybelle served on the board of A.R.T., Inc., twice served at president of the Fremont Art Association, and also served as president of the local chapter of California Retired Teachers Association (CRTA). During the last five years of her life, she was lovingly cared for in her Hayward home by her devoted caregiver and companion, Laveti Veidovi. The two went out to lunch almost every day, and often took day car trips all over the Bay Area. Twice in Maybelle’s last three years the two of them flew to San Diego to visit relatives and the zoo. Accompanied and aided by Laveti, Maybelle remained engaged in life until her last days. Her daughter Susan predeceased her in 2016. She is survived by her son-in-law, Jeff Verne, niece Kristi Joseph, nephew Jeff Jones, and grand-nieces and nephews Amanda and Austin Jones, and Mathew and Christopher Joseph. A celebration of Maybelle’s life, with the bulk of her many paintings from over the years on display, will be held at 11:30 a.m., on December 14th, at the Adobe Art Center and Gallery, 20395 San Miguel Ave., Castro Valley. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be given in Maybelle’s name to A.R.T., Inc., by visiting the A.R.T., Inc. website.
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