graduate

(January 2007) We are saddened by the passing of Marshia Matthews, wife of classmate John Matthews. A brief biography of her life was reported in the 12/11/2006 North County Times.

"Marshia Anne Matthews, 59... passed away Thursday, Nov. 30, 2006, at home in Riverside, Calif., of brain cancer.

Marshia was born in Oceanside, Calif., on April 18, 1947, to Virgil B. and Beulah M. Hood. She grew up in Carlsbad, graduated from Carlsbad High School in 1965 and attended San Diego State University. Marshia is survived by her husband of nearly 37 years, John Matthews, sons Britt (Karin) of Oceanside and Blake of San Diego; daughters Amanda Losch (Frank) of Apple Valley and Jessica of Los Angeles; grandchildren Annalee, Annika and Mattheus Losch; sister Charla Boodry (Fred) of Carlsbad and eight nieces and nephews.

Marshia retired in 2001 from the Riverside Police Department, where she served as a community service representative and a dispatcher. She enjoyed music (especially Rock n Roll), dancing, reading, antiquing, and constant redecorating and spending time with her family. She was known for her wit, intelligence and, above all, her disarming humor and laughter. Marshia was dearly loved and will be missed by her family and her dear friends." (end)

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An obituary in the Riverside County Record 07 December 2006 reads as follows:

JURUPA¹ – Graveside services for Marshia Anne Matthews will be held Wednesday, 1 pm at Riverside National Cemetery². Mrs. Matthews died November 30. She was 59. A reception with the family will follow at 2:30 pm at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Post 9223 on Arlington Avenue in Riverside.

Mrs. Matthews moved to Jurupa Hills from Santa Ana in 1976. Mrs. Matthews and her husband, John, had four children: Britt, Mandy(Amanda), Jessica, and Blake.

Mrs. Matthews was a police service representative for the City of Riverside Police Department. She retired in 2001.

She was born April 18, 1947, in Oceanside to U.S. Marine Corps Major Virgil and Mrs. Beulah Hood. She was born at the U.S. Naval Hospital.. “She was a brilliant sister, wife, mother, grandmother and friend,” her children note.

Mrs. Matthews was graduated from Carlsbad High School and attended San Diego State University. She was a member of the Chi Omega Sorority. She married USMC Captain John Matthews in 1969 in Oceanside.

The Matthews couple moved from Oceanside to Santa Ana for a couple of years and in 1976 arrived in Jurupa Hills where they have lived for the past 30 years.

Mrs. Matthews son, Britt is a paramedic. Her daughter Mandy (Amanda) is a policewoman with the City of Fontana Police Department. Her daughter, Jessica, works in Westwood in communications and public relations.

Jessica attended UCLA where she became captain of the Bruins track and field team. Jessica starred at Rubidoux High and at UCLA in track and field and cross-country.

Mrs. Matthews son Blake is involved in construction.

Mrs. Matthews spent her many years singing, shopping for her family and redecorating her home.

Mrs. Matthews is survived by her husband John, her sister and brother in law, John Boodry; her children Britt (and daughter in law, Karin) Matthews; Mandy (Amanda Matthews) and (son-in-law) Frank Losch; Jessica Matthews and Blake Matthews; her grandchildren: Annalee, Annika, and Matti Losch.” (end)

(1) Jurupa Valley is a group of unincorporated communities situated amongst the picturesque hills of Riverside County, part of what is known as Southern California’s Inland Empire. Described as quaint, close-knit and fast-growing, Jurupa Valley includes the neighborhoods of Mira Loma, Pedley, Glen Avon, Rubidoux, Country Village, Indian Hills, Sunnyslope, West Riverside, Agua Mansa, Belltown, Jurupa Hills, Swan Lake and the Santa Ana River area between Norco and Riverside.

(2)Riverside National Cemetery is the fifth-largest cemetery managed by the National Cemetery Administration, and in 2000 was the most active in the system based on the number of interments. It was established in 1976 through the transfer of 740 acres from March Air Force Base, which during World War II was the U.S. Army‘s Camp William G. Haan. The cemetery was dedicated and opened for burials November 11, 1978.

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John and Marshia’s children, Jessica and Blake must have a preponderance of John’s athletic genes, and a separate news article is printed below. The order of birth of their children is hard to determine from a photo of the four of them, but here is my logic about Jessica’s age.

John and Marshia were married in 1969. If Jessica was born in 1977, then she would have been a 21 year old junior at UCLA in 1998. A 1998 UCLA Women’s Track Roster found on the Internet lists a Jessica Matthews, a junior, from Rubidoux High School in Riverside.

OK. So here’s another news article, date and source unknown.

Jessica Matthews, Former Rubidoux Student Body President, Captain of UCLA’s National Track Champions

Los Angeles – Jessica Lee Matthews, former student body president of Rubidoux High School, has been named captain of the UCLA women’s track team, which recently won the Indoor National Championship. Matthews in the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Matthews of Indian Hills…

Matthews originally enrolled at the University of Colorado after graduation from Rubidoux High. She was a member of that university’s cross country team. Her father, at the time, was retiring from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. Mr. Matthews, a wounded Vietnam veteran, was eligible to have his children attend California universities free of tuition under a new state law prompting Jessica to transfer to UCLA.

Jessica’s brother, Blake, also took advantage of the California law for disabled veterans and enrolled at Hayward Univerity where he is the captain of that university’s soccer team.

Another sister, Amanda, is an officer with the Fontana Police Department, and another brother, Britt, is a K9 officer with the Washoe County Sheriff’s Department. He is stationed at Incline Village at Lake Tahoe.

Jessica and Blake received $500 scholarship awards from the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 47, headquartered in Rubidoux.” (end)

(Ed. July 2007. More recent info about John's children: Britt is now a fireman/paramedic in Escondido. Jessica and Blake were not the only siblings blessed with athleticism. Amanda - she likes 'Mandy' better - played soccer and tennis at Cal State Hayward, and in 1988 her soccer team was the NCAA Division 2 Champion. Britt also played soccer and swam for Palomar College, a community college in San Marcos CA.)

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Some more bits and pieces of John's life:

John joined the California National Guard, enlisting in May 1951 and served through May 1954. He was assigned to Btry B 149th AAA Bn(SP), San Bruno CA [Battery B, 149th Regiment(?), AntiAircraftArtillery Battalion (Self-Propelled)] as an Auto(matic?) Weapons Crewman. He qualified as a sharpshooter with the 30 caliber M1 carbine. He was discharged as a Private First Class(E-3).

After graduation from Burlingame High School, John enrolled at the University of Colorado at Boulder where he played football. The siren song of California was too strong and he returned to finish college at San Francisco State College.

After leaving the U.S. Marine Corps, John served with distinction for 24 years as a deputy with the County of Los Angeles Sheriff's Office, retiriing in April 1996. Doing the math, he would have started in 1972. The last American troops left Viet Nam in April 1975.

John writes in a note that he served for 10 years as a member of the Mt. San Antonio Support Committee for the track meet. We believe he is talking about the Mt. San Antonio College Relays, an annual event that started in 1959. According to the Mt. SAC Relays website, "The Mt. SAC Relays continue to survive as a nonprofit event because of its strong network of volunteers. This group of dedicated officials and the lay Games Committee work tirelessly to ensure the success of the Relays." Mt. San Antonio (Junior) College - located east of Los Angeles - serves the cities of Pomona, Irwindale, Walnut, and Covina, among others.