Eleanor Mandrgoc was born in Herkimer NY in 1914.  She saw so much change during her long life.  After leaving MIT because of poor vision, her father started a business delivering blocks of ice for household ice boxes from a wagon pulled by a horse named Ted.  One of her early memories was living through the 1918 flu pandemic.  She attended one year of college in Syracuse during the Depression.

She loved to read. Asked once if she ever did anything naughty when she was growing up, she admitted that she would sneak a light under the covers and read when she was supposed to be going to sleep.

Eleanor was a World War II veteran.  When women were allowed to join the armed services during World War II, she and her sister joined the Navy as WAVEs.  The military uses IQ tests to determine which jobs are appropriate for a new inductee.  She was offered the highest-level job but wasn't comfortable with the responsibility required of an airport ground traffic controller.  She took the next level job which was instructing Navy pilots to fly using instruments using a Link Trainer which was undoubtedly the plum job available.

Eleanor moved to Lompoc in 1963 where she raised her family and participated in the community until 2014 when she moved to Sonoma County, CA, to be closer to family.

She was a talented artist with a good design sense.  In her old papers were drawings from when she was young of paper dolls and their clothes, a page of fashion drawings focusing on her hat designs, and sketches of people and animals.  She taught herself calligraphy and passed on her knowledge of balance and perspective to her daughter.  For decades, she designed and created dozens of thematic name tags for attendees at Christian Women's Club monthly meetings.

She was La Purisima DAR chapter registrar for over 20 years which involved assisting prospective members preparing their applications using her knowledge of genealogy to ensure accuracy tracing their lineage to ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War.  Everything required corroboration via old records. Eleanor made sure they were perfect before they were submitted for approval at the national level.

She also spent decades researching her family genealogy creating detailed and precise charts both by hand and eventually on her iMac computer after taking a computer class at Hancock College when she was in her 80's.  She traced one line back to 1300's England and another to the Mayflower.

She made clothes for herself and her children in addition to slipcovers and curtains.  Later, she made clothes for her grandchildren and her granddaughter's dolls.  When she was 102, she knitted a blanket for one of her great-grandsons.

She was also a genuinely nice person.  She had an amazing ability to maintain her composure and grace in the face of adversity. To the very end, she was kind and appreciative to her caregivers, all of whom loved her.

Eleanor passed away peacefully in her sleep on July 31, 2021.  She is survived by her children, Caroline Hughes of Penngrove, CA and Bob Mandrgoc, of Nevada City, CA, 2 grandchildren and 2 step grandchildren, and 7 great grandchildren.  She was preceded in death by her husband, Paul, in 2009.  We will all miss her.

A graveside service is being planned for Spring 2022.