Nathalie Giacomini was born to Manuel and Julia Viegas in Rio Dell, California on November 20, 1930. On December 17, 2024 she passed peacefully at Redwood Memorial Hospital in Fortuna. She was a life-long resident of Humboldt County.

Nathalie was the daughter of Portuguese immigrants. She once told us that when she began elementary school, she could not speak English because they had only spoken Portuguese in her home. It was a difficult transition for her to begin school in, what was to her, a foreign language. During those years, while growing up in the tightly knit Portuguese and Italian community of Rio Dell, there were many days when she and her friends would gather to talk, laugh and gossip on the front porch of her parents’ home. Their home was located on the busy Main Street of Rio Dell which at that time, was Highway 101. It was definitely a central meeting place. In high school, she focused on business classes. Her first job was in the office at Bertain’s Laundry in Scotia. Later, she worked for a company in Eureka performing data entry.

One fine day, while serving as a bridesmaid in Liz and Harold Giacomini’s wedding, she met the love of her life. He was Harold’s brother, Ernest. She reported being very attracted to the handsome young man whose hobby was piloting airplanes. They married on August 27, 1950.

In 1951, Ernie was drafted to serve in the US Army. His bride joined him in Monterey,California while he took his basic training. While there with her husband, Nathalie learned that she was pregnant with their first child, Cecilia. She returned to her parents home to wait for the baby‘s birth and be near her doctor. The couple was reunited when Ernie drove from Monterey to be present to welcome his firstborn in December of 1951. Unfortunately, soon after, he was shipped out to the war in Korea. Nathalie remained in the Rio Dell home with her parents and her younger sister, Alda. It was a difficult time for her, as a young woman, to have a new baby and her husband fighting in a war thousands of miles away.

Fortunately, Ernie returned safely from Korea and they were able to begin their new life together. The couple rented a dairy ranch in Alton and raised their family of three children Cecilia, Paul and Fred there. The life of a dairyman and his wife is not an easy one. The cows had to be milked twice a day, every single day, and Nathalie was standing by with hot meals and baked goods. She was known for her lasagna and pies, in particular. Most of the transportation and care of the children was her responsibility as well. Occasionally on those times when Ernie was sick, she could be found feeding the baby calves or trying to help in other ways.

On the heels of surviving polio, while pregnant with Paul in 1954, Mother Nature had her way with the ranch when, in 1955, the Eel River flooded and their home filled with over fve feet of water. Fortunately, the family was evacuated by row boat.

Ernie and Nathalie were a strong couple with a great deal of faith. They overcame these obstacles and pursued their desire to own their own dairy and home. Once the opportunity arose for them to buy their ranch in Ferndale, they jumped at the chance. Their dairy farm, which they moved to in 1963, sat at the foot of the hillside along Grizzly Bluff Road.

Once relocated into their new home, they set about trying to make it a profitable dairy. It was there that Nathalie learned to sew and quilt, and added those skills to her love of reading and gardening. She always had a meal ready for Ernie as well as any hired men, hay, haulers or milk testers who happen to be working on the ranch. Also, as her mother aged, Nathalie attended to her and helped her in many ways.

Curiosity was one of her qualities. She recently asked for the gift of a world map so that she could put it on her wall and identify the places that she read about. At one point, while she was in her 80s she referred to social media and stated “I feel left out.” She was introduced to an iPad and magically, her world was expanded by the use of Google and following her family through social media.

Over the years, she continued to care deeply and be concerned for her adult children. She was a loving mother and a kind person who will be greatly missed. She opened her arms to her grandchildren and great grandchildren and took immense pleasure in being with them and following them in their activities. To this day, her great-grandchildren speak with fondness of the many bowls of her homemade chicken soup that she provided them

The love between Ernie and Nathalie was always evident. They showed all of us the importance of love, commitment, loyalty and obvious affection. Hopefully, he is still telling her jokes and making her laugh.

Nathalie is survived by her three children, Cecilia, (Ted Mason), Paul Giacomini and Fred Giacomini ( Rebecca). Her grandchildren, Teresa Dreise (Matt), Mikaela Giacomini (Sean) and Taylor Giacomini (Tristine), Stefanie Enright (Trevor), Brooke Quinlan (Michael) and Rob Mason. She has six great-grandchildren, Quinn and Evan Dreise, Talula Wright, Aidan Enright and Cassidy and Iris Quinlan. Her sister, Alda Nordstrom, sisters in law Elsie Giacomini, Mary Ellen Giacomini Laffranchi, Rose Giacomini Beall and Leona Giacomini Vertrees and many nieces and nephews

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Ernest, and her son-in-law Ken Hallum.

Because of the loving care our mother received at Redwood Memorial Hospital our family suggests memorial donations be made to The Redwood Memorial Hospital Foundation, 2700 Dolbeer St, Eureka, CA 95501 or to the charity of your choice.

A funeral mass will be held at Assumption Church in Ferndale on Saturday, February 1 at 10:30 a.m. A celebration of her life with lunch will follow at the parish hall after the service.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Nathalie Giacomini’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.