Muriel M. Chiolis

Muriel Marie Chiolis, 93, of Davis California, passed away peacefully on Friday January 13, 2023, after a short hospice care at the home she shared with her beloved husband Richard.  Family and friends were all able to spend time together with Muriel prior to her passing.

Muriel was born on August 3, 1929 in San Jose California to Joseph and Sophie (Naucke) Kottinger, growing up first with older sister Dorothy (Wuss) and then younger sister JoAnne (Hogate) in a loving household complete with fish pond and multiple bird cages as family pets.  She attended Lincoln High School in San Jose and graduated with an Associate of Arts degree from San Jose State College.

She developed a life-long set of friends at both High School and College, and they continued to gather together on a regular basis to celebrate that friendship.  The group named themselves the “SuKaun” Sisters and met and corresponded on a regular basis throughout their lives, even having their own newsletter and scheduled reunions.

She enjoyed the vacations that the family took together while growing up, and especially liked going to the beach at Santa Cruz, with her close friends, during the summers in the San Jose area and that’s where she met her future husband, Richard in April 1946.  They were married in June of 1951 and were together for more than 75 years.

She put her husband through Whitworth College and Seminary School in San Anselmo by working as a secretary and assistant for a group of attorneys’ as well as for the county of Marin in the Social Services division.

Muriel and Richard went to Alaska as missionaries with the Tlingit Indians near Juno for 2 summers where she helped build a new recreation hall for children from all over as well as teaching Sunday School.  She appreciated the time together with the people in Alaska and the experiences captured.

Upon returning to San Jose they lived in a great neighborhood in San Jose before moving to Woodland California where she would spend the majority of her life.

Muriel was a devoted Wife, Mother, and Friend to many and together with husband Richard they raised two children, Mark and Eileen, two cats, and many plants and vegetables in their expansive garden.  She enjoyed baking and cooking for friends and family and her family said she made the best lasagna, spaghetti, apple pies and several types of cookies.  She enjoyed traveling to Netherlands, Greece, China, and many places in the United States each year as part of the Sports Leisure travel group.

After raising Mark and Eileen, Muriel went to work at Gibson School, in Woodland, as an assistant and secretary, where she developed additional lifelong friendships with school peers and was respected and appreciated by the students and faculty at the school.  She enjoyed regular evenings spending time with family, knitting, playing bridge and bunko with friends and most recently doing arts and crafts and playing corn hole at the facility where they lived.

She is predeceased by her sisters Dorothy and JoAnne.  She is survived by her loving family, husband Richard, son Mark and daughter Eileen.

A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday April 1^st at Davis Community Church, 412 C Street, Davis, beginning at 2PM.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, Muriel’s family kindly requests that donations be made to Sutter Health Care Hospice or the Alzheimer’s Association in her memory.