Obituary of Curtis Jerome Sathre, II

On January 25Th Curt Sathre was in an accident on Latrobe road as he was going for his blood draw for his yearly check up. He had some severe head injures and some fractures; all fractures could heal on their own. No internal injuries. We do not know what caused the accident. He could have swerved to miss someone who was across the line. There also was a cold storm and we wondered about black ice. We do not know. They kept him in a coma to help him heal. At times they lowered the sedation a bit and he was able to respond somewhat. When I asked him to open his swollen eyes, he twittered his eyelids. Then he moved his jaw around a bit and did it again when I asked him if he was trying to tell me something. (too many tubes to talk) He could move his arms, legs and wiggle his toes. Also could squeeze my hand. He fought a heroic battle to get well and come home to our wonderful family and me but after 2 weeks his body just couldn't take any more and there no longer was anything the Dr's could do to save him.. Our Good Lord called him home. They say he was tough and a real fighter as most people younger would have been gone on impact. But as the medical staff said, "He was as healthy as a horse." He had an angiogram in January and His Dr. said he would never die of a heart attack because his arteries were those of a 30 year old. The stress-echo he had a few months earlier came out with a good report as well. God was calling Our Good Man.(husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and friend of many) home to his reward. Curt knew we were all at his bedside. We were married September 17, 1960 in Washington state. We went to the same high school and Jr. college although I dropped out since we could only afford for one of us to go to school. We moved to Seattle on return from our honeymoon to San Francisco. Curt went to the University of Washington and I was hired as an executive secretary at Boeing. Thus it was a Ceramic Engineering Degree for Curt and a PHT (putting hubby through) for me. Upon graduation, in 1964, Curt accepted a position as an Engineer at Ferro Corporation in Cleveland He continued to work in his field until 1995 when he did some consulting and we had a chance to move to Amador County. We had always liked the Shingles Springs area and then we found Sutter Creek was even more desirable Curt went back and received his MBA. We are fortunate to have so many wonderful friends here as well as across the country that we love dearly. Curt did go back to UOP and obtain a teaching credential in math with a secondary in science. He found his real niche in the working world with this position because he loved what he was doing so much, teaching at Preston. He wanted to help these boys and could hardly wait to tell me when just one or two were proud enough to bring his parents, aunt, or uncle over to him at graduation and say,"This is the teacher who helped me make this happen." He gave the students a reward whenever they passed a test, etc. We cannot say enough about the administration and staff there. They are wonderful people and many became like part of the family. They, like so many of our other friends, have been unbelievably caring through this terrible and painful ordeal. Need less to say our family and I are totally devastated. Curt kept a list of all the Veterans in the rest home in Jackson so he could be certain to take a card and gift for their birthday. This was his participation through the ELKS. As it said in the paper he was very proud of being a 10+ Blood donor. Our children always knew they could volunteer us for whatever was needed, chaperons, refreshments, etc. Also leadership in Scouts, Little League, and Curt even started a City Girls softball league when our girls wanted to play ball. The love of and for others was always so vi sable with him and he enjoyed having me by his side. It was always fun and so rewarding. Our Family had the privilege of having Curt so many wonderful loving years, and have the proud honor of calling him Loving Husband, Dad, Grandpa, and Great Grandpa. As 7 year old Maddie said, ""What are we going to do for a Papa now?" He will remain in our hearts forever. Love to All Our Friends and Heartfelt Thanks for being there for us, Connie, Our Children, Great children and Great Grandchildren Friends are invited to attend a memorial mass and reception Saturday, March 26 at 11:30 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church located on the corner of Amelia and Spanish Streets in Sutter Creek. Inurnment will be private. Curtis J. Sathre passed away Saturday, March 12, 2011 in Sacramento at the age of 71 years. He was born October 26, 1939 to Curtis and Barbara (Deal) Sathre in International Falls, MN. Curtis was in the Coast Guard Auxiliary for 20 years; was a professional ceramic engineer with patents for 30 years; and taught mathematics at Preston Youth Authority for 10 years. Curtis was proud of being a 10 gallon blood donor. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Connie Sathre of Sutter Creek; children, Curtis Sathre III of Oceanside, CA, Cheryllyn Sathre of South Lake Tahoe, CA, Colette Alvernaz of Livingston, CA, Christopher Sathre of San Juan Capistrano, CA; sister, Carol Braden of Renton, WA; brother, James Sathre of Longview, WA; 16 grandchildren; and 4 great-grandchildren.