Carmen Louise McCovey Moon
February 12, 1938 – February 23, 2023

Carmen passed away peacefully at home on February 23, 2023, surrounded by family.

Carmen was the 11th of 12 siblings born to Charles Jr. and Sadie McCovey at Notchko. The story was when Sydney was lying in bed with her parents, their dad told her that she was no longer going to be the baby since he had been kicked in the back by Carmen who was in her Momma’s belly. Carmen was born on Friday the 13th according to her mom, but the Government put her date as the 12th. She never knew that until she was applying for her passport, and they made her go get an official birth certificate to get the “correct” date.

Carmen always had an adventurous spirit, always willing to go on a road trip with whomever would take her. She cruised halfway across the country with her favorite son-in-law Danny and daughter Ronalda to go visit her good friend Dorothy Chezem in South Dakota. She also loved each time she went to Hawaii. The last time was for a 60th anniversary trip with a small group of 11 family members, going to see where they used to live near Sunset Beach.

She loved being a mom and loved being a grandma even more, but her favorite was being “GramGram” to her great grandbabies, who meant the world to her. She made each one of her babies feel the love she had for them, and she lit up their world with it. She loved to laugh and was well known for her giggle.

Carmen and Fred met when Ronalda was just a baby. Within the year, Carmen and Fred were married with Little Fred joining the family right after. A year later, Delores Faye dazzled this world, and two years later, on the same day, Richard came. Their baby Marjorie completed their family. Lila and Little Clyde spent a lot of time with Fred and Carmen, and being double first cousins with the kids, they were just like one of their own.

She had many hats from all the jobs she worked throughout her life. She worked at Humboldt Fire in Hoopa, then moved to working at the Nursery in McKinleyville while Fred was working his Moon’s Barbershop along Central Avenue. During her time at the Nursery, they used to go out as a fire support crew. When the nursery closed, they formed their own camp crew called “The Native’s” with Carmen, Ida Liles, sister Sydney, and niece Laura Borden. They were well known in fire camp for with their neon green hats. After retiring, she loved it when her former crew members came up to her to say hi and check in when they’d see each other.

She was proud to be a Yurok Tribal Member and loved going to her East District meetings. She was a part of the United Indian Health Service (UIHS) Board of Directors and she served on the Yurok Tribe’s Election Board for many years. At meetings, her favorite thing was when her many nieces and nephews would come up to her and say, “Hi Auntie”. Family was always such an important part of her life. She loved being a part of her church family as well, and was grateful for all the friendships that she had created with them.

Carmen lost the love of her life, Fred, two years ago. Marjorie was able to keep her busy with many adventures from driving North to visit her good friend and Sister-in-law Kayo, going on the Skunk Train ride outside of Willits, staying overnight in Redding to shop and making sure she got her pedicures and manicures too. She loved camping at Fish Lake, especially being out on the lake in a boat. Camping brought back the memories of all those years at Fire Camp with her crew.

Carmen was preceded in death by her love Fredrick Moon Sr., son Fredrick Moon Jr., nephew/son Little Clyde, grandbaby Billy Dee, granddaughter DeeFaye, grandbaby Serenity, her parents Charles and Sadie McCovey, and her siblings Allen McCovey, Bernice Roubidoux, Ramona “Coonie” Trimble, Darrell McCovey, Charles “Big Boy” McCovey, Howard “Edgie” McCovey, Stanley “Cart” McCovey, Florence “Flossie” McCovey, Marion “Shoeshine” McCovey, Delores “Dee” Reed, and her nephew/brother Allen “Buzz” McCovey.

Carmen is survived by her best friend/sister Sydney “Syd” Carroll and her sister-in-law Kayo Moon. Her children Ronalda and Danny, Delores, Richard and Tammy, Marjorie and Lila. Her grandbabies: Carmeli and Nolan “No”, Leland “Leapin’ Lee”, Christina, Medero “Hector”, Annalisa “Ducky” and Rashauna “MeMe”, Liles “Two scoops of Poopa Loops” and Yvonne, Little Richard “Cha-bon”, Meagen and Guy, Darrell and Ernie, Travis “Travi-o-so”and Chern, Jasmine and “E”, Nena, Shaleen and Bobby, Damon and Hailey, Aaron and Rochelle. Her greatest loves, her great grandbabies Raymond “Mr. Woo”, Helena “Heyney Bug”, Rylan “RC”, Eric, Melia, Little Medero, Mederiona, Emony, Prince, DiAuni, London, Brooklyn, Little Liles, Queenz, Raymond A, Dianna Faith, Naschewen, Richard, Fred, Kaycen, Kayrich, Dolly, Robert, Emily “Emmer-nemmers”, Raymond B “Old Baby”, Riley, Anjelica, Issac, Antonio, Santiago “Chago”, Jaycon, Carmen, Little Darrell, Paisley, Anthony, Malia, Malachi, Michael “Tecka”, Chai, Faith, Woodsey, David, Kylie, Kalissa “Peach”. And her great greats Alani, Cartier and Cash.

There will be a wake on Wednesday, March 1st, 2023, at the Hoopa Assembly of God Church on Tish Tang starting at 7 p.m., and the services will be held on Thursday, March 2nd, at 11 a.m., also at the Hoopa Assembly of God with Juan Armand officiating. She will be buried next to her love Fred at the Moon Cemetery on Pine Creek Road. The gathering will be at the Hoopa Trading Post following.

Pall Bearers: Leland, Darrell, Travis, Liles, Damon, Aaron, Guy, and Robert.

Honorary Pall Bearers: Danny, Larry Jordan, Nolan Begay, “E” Booth, LG McCovey, Ron Reed, Greg Trimble, Roy Ammon, Bob Borden, Huna Borden, Bobby Lee Tatum, Toby Carroll, Greg O’rourke, James Lee McCovey, Kenny Roubidoux, Kash McCovey, Inker McCovey, Kelly Burns, Terry McCovey, Aaron Kane, George Moon, Junior Moon, Clyde Moon, Mike Orcutt, Kevin Orcutt, Gabe Moon, Raymond Moon, Leonard “Super” Bibancos, Willie Hoaglen, Loren Norton, Marlon Sorrell, Tim Casey, Blaze Carpenter, Willy Masten, and Rod Johnson.

Please know that she loved everyone, and if we forgot your name, it was not intentional.

We have a special thank you to Heather Mace for all the love, care, and the laughs that you gave mom on your weekly visits. Thank you to Susan Walsh for all the years of helping Mom with her health care.

Arrangements are under Paul’s Chapel in Arcata.

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

HUMBOLDT TODAY: A person was found dead at an Old Town bus stop in Tuesday’s frigid morning hours. The weather continues to take its toll on our regions roadways. PG&E warns that more power outages are expected. But did you hear Humboldt’s housing woes mentioned by Stephen Colbert last night? Sigh. Those stories and more in today’s newscast with John Kennedy O’Connor.

FURTHER READING:

• TODAY IN SUPES: Board Puts $29M Jail Expansion Project Out for Bids 
• Man Found Dead at Old Town Bus Stop Early This Morning 
• Highway 299 Closed Due to Snow (Again) 

HUMBOLDT TODAY can be viewed on LoCO’s homepage each night starting at 6 p.m. Want to LISTEN to HUMBOLDT TODAY? Subscribe to the podcast version here.

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On Tuesday morning, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved plans for a $29 million jail expansion project — the future site of an adult inmate rehabilitation center — and put the project out for bids.

Years in development, the four-story, 28,500-square-foot building, dubbed a “Community Corrections Re-Entry Resource Center,” will house a minimum-security, 44-bed custody unit offering programs aimed at preparing inmates to re-enter society.

The resource center is intended to free up space in the jail for higher-security inmates who, prior to California’s Criminal Justice Realignment legislation, AB 109 and AB 117, would have been sent to prison but are instead sentenced to terms inside the county jail, often long ones. For example, one recent convict could be sentenced to 18 years in the county facility.

Sheriff Billy Honsal told the board that during the seven years that this project has been in development, the projected cost ballooned from $20 million to $28,963,516. 

The state is providing the majority of that funding with $20 million in reimbursement money for architectural design, construction and management fees. The remaining bill of $8,963,516 falls to the county, including $3.85 million previously approved by the Community Corrections Partnership Executive Committee.

However, the county is still more than $1 million short of covering the projected cost. The extra funds are available via the 2020 finance plan, according to a staff report, though staff wants to hold off on a specific budget request until after the bids come in “due to the current volatile nature of construction costs.”

Honsal said the new facility will streamline the process for inmates being released from jail. Currently they’re instructed to head over to the Probation Department’s “day reporting center,” at 404 H Street, though they don’t always follow through. 

“Sometimes they’ll go right there; sometimes they exit and go the opposite direction,” Honsal said. With the new facility, inmates can check in at the reporting center before even leaving the property. The Department of Health and Human Services will also have personnel onsite.

“We hope that that will encourage people to stick with the programs and we’re going to see less recidivism,” Honsal said.

First District Supervisor Rex Bohn, appearing remotely, said the resource center will have space for job fairs and mental health services.

“It’s a huge project and it’s kind of exciting to actually see this come to fruition,” he said.

Second District Supervisor Michelle Bushnell, who also Zoomed in remotely, offered Honsal congratulations on reaching this step, but she had some questions about the financing, which includes $30,000 from the general fund, more than $3 million from the 2020 finance plan and nearly $4.5 million from the Community Corrections Partnership.

Honsal noted that the county is currently paying more than $100,000 per year to rent 404 H Street, which will be abandoned once this facility is complete, and while not all of the fiscal details have been worked out yet, Honsal said the new facility will be “essentially a state building for 20 years,” after which it will belong to the county.

“So we will have a … $30 million building and it’ll be the county’s building entirety, so I think this is money well spent.”

The existing day reporting center and the Sheriff’s Work Alternative Program (SWAP) would move into the new facility to provide expanded “out-of-custody re-entry programming,” such as mental health and substance abuse services.

Bushnell said she was concerned about the increased staffing costs. The county is estimating that the new facility will require 20 more full-time employees, including 15 correctional deputies and five senior correctional deputies, to cover the resource center’s 24/7 operations. That’s expected to cost $2,376,600 per year, based on the current year’s budget, and those costs will continue indefinitely into future years. 

“I just want to clarify if you could,” Bushnell said. “The hit to [the] general fund over certain amounts of years will be around $9 million. Is that correct?”

“I’m not sure,” Honsal replied.

County Administrative Officer Elishia Hayes stepped in to say that Honsal understands the county’s current “financial constraints” and has developed a “contingency plan where he can repurpose some of his current staffing levels if so required.”

Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson observed that this is the county’s third significant new facility in a row, after the juvenile hall and the animal shelter, to be built for incarceration or “incarceration-adjacent” purposes. The county needs to “do better” and broaden its vision for new facilities and the purposes they serve, he said.

Honsal said he agrees but also feels it’s important to take advantage of state grant money when it’s offered, as it was for both the juvenile hall and the jail expansion. 

Wilson pushed back a bit, saying state grants shouldn’t absolve the county of “the lack of vision” to pursue bonds, grants and other sources of financing for facilities that serve purposes beyond locking people (or animals) up.

Fourth District Supervisor Natalie Arroyo said she’s “a little anxious” about the 20 new Sheriff’s Office positions up for approval, as well as estimated funding shortfall. 

“It sounds like the funds are available in the 2020 finance plan which can be financed … as long-term debt, but if it goes over that [projected amount], what are our options if it’s significantly more?” Arroyo asked.

“We would need to return to your board to have a bigger conversation about that,” Hayes replied.

There was some debate among the board about whether this project should technically be considered a jail expansion. Arroyo said that while she has always heard it described as a jail expansion, “My understanding from what [Honsal is] saying and from all of what I’ve read is that this is really about a step-down [facility] or an alternative way of handling certain people who could reintegrate into society differently.”

Honsal said she is correct and that the minimum-security facility will offer program space for “low-lying offenders” while they’re in custody. 

Bohn theorized that the “misnomer” of “jail expansion” came from the facility being connected to the jail. He also quibbled with Wilson’s description of the animal shelter as an incarceration facility and said he hopes the new resource center reduces recidivism. 

The group discussion diverged from that point, but Wilson later returned to the semantics debate. 

“This is an expansion of a jail, even though we don’t call it that,” he said. “I mean, we just talked about how it creates more beds. … There’s more people that will be incarcerated. It’s just something we need to think about.”

The jail, which has been described as the county’s ugliest building, is also its largest, and Wilson said county leaders should consider “the imprint on our society with relationship to these structures and what it says about ourselves, and where we set our priorities.” That said, he added that he supports moving forward.

Fifth District Supervisor and Board Chair Steve Madrone said he thinks it’s great that the county will have a facility designed to help people move back into society. 

“I’m glad to see that the state started to provide a little bit of money along with all the prisoners they’ve been sending us,” he said. “That’s long overdue.”

Connie Beck, director of the Department of Health and Human Services, agreed, saying this facility was needed a decade ago.

“This is really going to help DHHS staff to work better and engage more people coming out of the jail,” Beck said.

Shaun Brenneman, the county’s chief probation officer, said the county has been lacking the necessary space for programs that can help people to improve their lives. 

“The thing I like to think about is, there should be no wasted days in custody,” he said. “You should always be working forward to coming back into the community, to make yourself a more successful version of yourself. We don’t have the space for those people to really do that right now, and so this [facility] will allow our reentry programs to be enhanced.”

Emi Botzler-Rodgers, the county’s director of behavioral health, said her staff is currently working with inmates while they’re in the jail, which is not an ideal setting for people who may have serious mental health issues. 

“I think this new facility would allow for an expansion, sure, but also just more humane and treatment-oriented opportunities,” she said, adding that it will be easier to coordinate with other providers on a release plan that allows for better connection to social services.

Arroyo asked whether the new facility will have space and support for inmates undergoing drug and/or alcohol detox. Honsal said there’s a medical facility inside the current jail and the 44 new beds can be configured however the county best sees fit, including focusing on mental health and detox.

“You know, when it comes to the jail, I often refer to it as ‘the gift of jail,’” Honsal said, “because … some people need that 30 days in custody in order to get sober-minded, to get back on their mental health meds, to get away from the drugs so they can be clear-headed to make a decision about what’s best for their future.”

Bushnell made the motion to approve the plans and put the project out for bids. Bohn seconded. The vote was unanimous. The county hopes to break ground on the project later this year, and if all goes to plan the facility will be built by 2025.

A man was found dead at a bus stop in Old Town Eureka early this morning, Eureka police have confirmed.

Cmdr. Leonard La France told the Outpost earlier today that police received a “man down” call at that location just after 7 a.m. today. Officers responded to the scene and quickly called for the coroner.

The subject was a male, confirmed Asst. Chief Brian Stephens. He said that the cause of death will not be known until an autopsy is complete, and did not have any information to share about the person’s housing status — though he did note that no attempts were made to resuscitate the man, indicating that he had been dead at the bus stop for some time.

The death comes on the eve of a special Eureka City Council meeting to discuss a new initiative to provide safe camping/tiny house villages for people experiencing homelessness. That meeting is at 5:30 p.m. at Eureka City Hall — 531 K Street.

When California recorded the first U.S. case of COVID-19 more than three years ago, the news was met with fear, confusion and public ire. Schools and businesses closed. State and local officials ordered people to stay home and mask up. Hospitals overflowed with sick and dying patients.

Today, on the last day of the state’s emergency order, much of public life has returned to normal. But for many communities around the state, the disappearance of COVID-19 resources is merely a reminder that the health disparities highlighted during the pandemic are long-entrenched.

“People who were in the gap are going to go back into the gap,” said Kim Rhoads, a physician and associate public health professor at UC San Francisco who has worked throughout the pandemic to make tests and vaccines more accessible to Black and brown neighborhoods in the Bay Area. “There’s going to be a noticeable difference in access.”

The end of the emergency order marks a drastic change in the state’s strategy for managing a virus that has exacted a devastating toll: 100,187 deaths. Moving forward, the state will lean on its $3.2 billion long-term COVID-19 plan, which involves stockpiling masks and vaccines, but public health agencies will no longer serve as the primary provider of COVID-19 care.

“There will be a big transition. I don’t think it will be smooth.”
— Dr. Rita Nguyen, Assistant State Public Health Officer

Already, the state has closed all but six OptumServe testing and vaccination centers, according to its appointment website. In an unsigned email, state public health officials acknowledged the “very real toll the pandemic has taken on Californians,” but remained confident its long-term strategy would be sufficient.

“California is equipped to manage the spread of COVID-19, and to continue to limit hospitalizations and deaths as much as possible,” the email stated. Health department officials refused an interview request.

Other resources have dried up as well. Community organizations and local public health departments told CalMatters that money for COVID-19 outreach and response has either already run out or will be gone by summer. Federal support will also expire when the nationwide emergency ends in May.

“After the (state of emergency) ends, there’s not going to be any more substantial money given to COVID-19,” said Bernadette Boden-Albala, dean of UC Irvine’s public health program. “All of the attempts to get information out, to vaccinate folks in harder-to-reach communities, is going to get much harder and at best will be forced into other programs.”

‘Gaps’ in COVID-19 care likely

Traditionally, public health departments have never been direct service providers. Mass vaccine clinics and test-to-treat sites were a modern-day anomaly necessitated by the virus’ aggressive infection rate. Absent funding, much of that work will stop.

During a monthly meeting with county health officers, Assistant State Public Health Officer Dr. Rita Nguyen acknowledged there will be “gaps” in services as public health steps back.

“There will be a big transition. I don’t think it will be smooth. I think we’re all doing the best that we can to help with that transition, but (for) a lot of the services we will not be able to support at the level that we have before,” Nguyen said. “That’s where we’re trying to engage our partners and say ‘We won’t be in this space in a few months. What else can you do to keep work going in this space?’”

“We’re shoving a public health function into health care, and public health and health care are two totally different things.”
— Kim Rhoads, physician and associate public health professor at UCSF

At the county level, much of the work involving COVID-19 care has already “significantly scaled down,” said Lizelle Lirio de Luna, director of family health services in San Mateo County. Her division oversaw the vaccination program for the county and doled out more than 185,000 shots. San Mateo’s vaccine clinics will end in March, and COVID-19 grants will be used up by June.

“It’s still evolving what our role will be, but our primary role will not be how it has been where we deliver the direct vaccination service,” De Luna said.

Public health will largely return to its typical role of monitoring infectious diseases of all types, investigating outbreaks, communicating the importance of vaccination and supporting medical providers when necessary — similar to the role it plays during flu season. But local officials, while cautious, were quick to assure that some level of service will be available.

“Because there is an end of a public health emergency doesn’t mean our work ends,” said Rosyo Ramirez, deputy director of community health in Imperial County. “We’ll continue to work as we have been in trying to prevent serious illness.”

The last state-funded testing and treatment sites in Imperial County will close in the beginning of March, Ramirez said, and people will need to go to their medical provider for care. Statewide, the majority of sites closed in January. Imperial’s COVID-19 money will run out in July.

The message to the public is clear: Go see a doctor for your COVID-19 needs.

That message, however, is fraught with uncertainty, about who, if anyone, will step up to fill health care gaps that predated the pandemic. Although medical providers have far more built-in infrastructure to conduct tests and give vaccines than they did three years ago, many people struggle with regular access to health care — particularly those living in rural areas of the state, those who are uninsured and those who can’t afford out-of-pocket charges.

“Everything is moving towards commercialization,” Rhoads with UCSF said. “All of the resources for COVID are getting pushed into your doctor’s office, so you have to have a doctor…We’re shoving a public health function into health care, and public health and health care are two totally different things.”

Disparities largely unchanged

Though the state poured billions of dollars into COVID-19 emergency response and economic relief efforts — much of which focused on equity — many underserved communities are ending the pandemic in the same way they started: with an acute awareness of unmet need.

Early in the pandemic, the virus swept through the ranks of Latino farmworkers, low-wage factory employees, Filipino nurses, undocumented immigrants, Black and Pacific Islander communities, families living in multigenerational housing or cramped quarters, and others unable to work from home or without adequate access to health care. Of the more than 100,000 COVID-19 deaths to date, Pacific Islanders have the highest mortality rate, followed by African Americans and Latinos.

Vaccination rates among these groups continue to trail far behind the state average. Latino residents fall nearly 15 percentage points below the state vaccination rate when it comes to receiving the first two COVID-19 shots. Native American and Black populations fall behind by 13 and 10 points respectively, while white and Asian groups exceed the statewide rate.

When it comes to the booster and bivalent booster doses, the gap widens significantly. Latinos, with the lowest booster rate, fall 10 points below the state average, 18 points behind their white counterparts and 24 points below Asians. White Californians have the highest bivalent booster rate. (Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have been excluded from this analysis due to anomalies in the state data, including more people reporting vaccination than are estimated in the total population.)

Similarly, the state’s vaccine equity metric shows that as subsequent doses of the vaccine were recommended, those in the most disadvantaged group became less and less likely to get additional shots compared to those in the most advantaged group. The equity metric takes into account socioeconomic variables like income and education as well as race.

The growing vaccine disparity is a reflection of decreased access, community organizers and experts say.

“Everyone wants to throw these health problems back to individuals and individual choice. That doesn’t help us serve the population,” UC Irvine Public Health Dean Boden-Albala said. “Disparities are not about the choices you make but about problems in infrastructure.”

In Delano, Loud For Tomorrow, a youth-led civic engagement group, was instrumental in hosting vaccine clinics and disseminating information by knocking on doors and phone banking. But the group’s funding for COVID-19 outreach ended last summer, said Jose Salvador Orellana, co-founder and lead organizer.

“From the beginning we knew state resources were still not at the level that we needed, and our community, specifically Spanish-speaking Latino communities, needed a different approach” including resources to combat disinformation, Orellana said.

While the state health department was an “amazing partner” in supporting Loud For Tomorrow and other groups’ efforts, most of the collaborations have since ended, Orellana said. Funding from private foundations has also dried up.

“The government relies on these nonprofits to connect to the community. They look like the community; they speak the languages our community speaks,” said Diana Otero, senior director of special projects at the Latino Community Foundation. “It’s really sad we don’t have the resources to continue to do this.”

Community groups that received emergency funding now need long-term investments to prevent disparities from worsening, Otero said. In many areas of the state where barriers like cost and distance keep people from accessing traditional brick-and-mortar health care, the COVID-19 clinics run by community organizers have become trusted resource centers.

United Against COVID-19, a coalition of seven community groups in Kern County, held its last vaccine clinic on Feb. 26. The group has vaccinated more than 9,600 people at pop-up clinics in parks and community centers around the county. Throughout the pandemic they’ve vaccinated about 100 people per weekend and continue to see similar numbers of attendees, belying official reports that demand has plummeted. In recent weeks roughly 75% of people coming into the clinics — primarily Latinos — have shown up for booster shots, said Reyna Olaguez, communications manager with Building Healthy Communities Kern, one of the coalition members.

The local health department’s contract with the vaccine provider the coalition uses expired the same day the emergency order ended, but Olaguez said they’re working with the department to use its mobile clinic van in the near future. The schedule won’t be as robust as they’ve been able to maintain — twice a month compared to twice a week — but it’s still important, Olaguez said.

“This work must continue,” Olaguez said. “When it started, it was not ordinary, but now it’s become something that our communities need to get access to health care.”

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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Barbara Jean McKeever Stafslein passed away peacefully in Eureka surrounded by her friends and family at 3 p.m. on February 19, 2023.

Barbara was born in Grafton, N.D. on April 27, 1945 to parents Gladys Smith McKeever and Matthew Marvin McKeever. She grew up in Hamilton, N.D. She attended school there and was a straight A student and valedictorian of her graduating class. Barbara was active in band and singing and was a class officer, and served as editor of the school newspaper “Tigers Roar” along with helping to produce her senior yearbook. She was a cheerleader for the basketball team all through high school. She also was an active member of the Hamilton Presbyterian Church. Barbara was selected to attend Girls State her junior year. Barbara was small in stature but she had an engine that wouldn’t quit. Barbara was offered a scholarship to University of North Dakota and selected to be in the honors program. That is where she met her future husband, Tim Stafslein.

Barbara and Tim both studied Art at the University of N.D. It was an instant connection and they were married in Grand Forks in 1966. While at the university Barbara earned the nickname “Mousie” because she had pet mice. She would be known as “Mousie” by most people from this point forward.

After the birth of their first child, a daughter Ona, in 1967, Mousie and Tim would follow their friend Christy Orion to California. They had heard tales of warm winters, beautiful mountains and tall trees. Mousie had always dreamed of living in the mountains and trees after growing up on the flat plains of North Dakota. So the move west began in 1968.

Their son Jebadiah was born in Fort Bragg in 1969, Samuel Dakota was born at home in Whale Gulch in 1972 and Isaac was born at the Sherwood Forest Motel in Garberville in 1981.

Mousie used to call herself a “modern-day gypsy.” She never liked to stay in one place too long. As a result she moved all over Southern Humboldt and Northern Mendocino County in her 50+ years in the area, landing in Fort Bragg, then Whitethorn, Whale Gulch, Whiskey Hill, Needle Rock, Miranda, Ettersburg, Alderpoint, Redway, Garberville, Weott and finally settling in Shelter Cove.

In the early 1980s Mousie started teaching math and English to junior high students at the Whale Gulch School. Her love of teaching was evident immediately and she decided to go back to school to get her credentials. In 1987 she earned her bachelor’s degree in education from Eastern Oregon State College. She would later complete her masters degree at Humboldt State University. In 1988 she began her teaching career for the Southern Humboldt Unified School District. She taught for numerous schools over her almost 30-year teaching career. These include: the Osprey Learning Center in Garberville, Casterlin Elementary School in Alderpoint, Miranda Junior High School and Weott Elementary School.

Mousie had the biggest heart and she loved each and every student like they were her own children. She always found a way to connect with people but especially with her students. She wanted to make learning fun and memorable. This was evident by the relationships she kept with generations of her students. After she retired she continued to sub and tutor because she loved teaching so much. Mousie was recognized with numerous awards over the course of her career including being chosen as the teacher to receive the Humboldt County Excellence in Teaching Award in 2014.

Mousie loved art, music, history, baking, gardening and nature. She especially loved visiting national parks, and it was extra special if there were a wide variety of wild flowers. If she could weave some history into her love of Nature and Parks she would do that. We once followed the Lewis and Clark trail from Oregon all the way to N.D. Mousie believed the best way to get from one point to another was to travel in one gigantic circle so you could see everything that was possible along the way.

Family was everything to her. Especially her grandchildren! She didn’t hesitate to pack up the car and head to Oregon or Sacramento to spend a week or two, catching up with her grandkids who lived out of town and all their activities. She was always at their plays, choir concerts, band concerts, basketball games, volleyball games, softball games and track meets. Her granddaughters that lived near her were always a part of her life and she would do anything for them. She never missed a birthday, graduation or any other holiday for that matter. If she couldn’t be there in person she would send one of her incredible cards. Collecting cards that reminded her of her family and friends became almost like a hobby to her. If you knew Mousie then you probably received one of her beautiful cards with a handwritten heartfelt message from her at some point in your life. She truly cared for and loved others unconditionally.

Mousie was preceded in death by her parents, Gladys and Marvin McKeever; her husband, Tim Stafslien; her brother Dennes McKeever and her son-in-law Malcus Williams.

Mousie is survived by her brother Richard McKeever; her sister Marjorie (Micheal) Axt; her daughter, Ona (Robert Smith) Williams; her sons, Jebadiah (Meredithe) Stafslien, Samuel (Karin) Stafslien, Isaac Stafslien; her grandchildren Jasmine (Torrey) Hass, Dakota Stafslien, Sammie Stafslien, Savannah (Steve) Sagert, Georgia (Collin) Malcolm, Brooklyn Williams, Avery (Kelly) Stafslien, Abby Stafslien; her great-grandchildren Olivia Hass, Oliver Hass, Felix Hass, Sterling Sagert; and many cousins, nieces and nephews.

We will all gather to celebrate the life of an amazing mother, sister, grandmother, friend and teacher as soon as the weather is nice and we can be outside in the sun, fresh air and nature that Mousie loved.

In lieu of flowers or cards please think about making a donation in her name to the National Parks Foundation, the National Wildlife Federation or your local food bank.

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

Rosa Roete
September 6, 1935-February 21, 2023

Rosa, born in Aalst, Belgium to the late Gustaf and Josephine deSchryver, passed away peacefully at her home, surrounded by family on February 21, 2023 at the age of 87. Rosa was a wonderful, kind, humble woman of faith who helped take care of everyone around her. She was strong through all her loss and she was a woman of grace who loved her family fiercely.

Rosa lost her mom at the age of three, and her Father was deported to a work camp in Germany, so Rosa was sent to live with her Grandmother Rosalie and her Aunt Hilde. She emigrated to Canada with her Father, at the age of 15, where she worked as a seamstress. She met her future husband, Hubert, who was also from Belgium. They married in 1953 and their first daughter, Anne, was born in Montreal in 1955. A short time later they went to Detroit where their second daughter, Doris, was born. Then they moved to Laguna Beach, California where they had three more children — Christine, Brigitte, and finally a boy, Mark.

After 13 beautiful years in Southern California they packed up the five kids and moved to Loleta to follow Hubie’s dream of becoming a dairy farmer. Rosa worked for many years at the Loleta Grocery Store where she made many lifelong friends. On the farm she took care of the calves and kept the books. Rosa loved to cook and bake. She was famous for her Belgian Waffles. Their farmhouse was always filled with children, grandchildren, love and laughter, especially during the holidays. Throughout her life she liked to sew, making all the kids clothes, she enjoyed swimming with Hubie at EPT for many years, and she loved to watch her children and grandchildren play basketball.

She is survived by her children; Anne Hornsby, Doris (Robert) Echeveria, Christine (Jeff) Jacobs, Mark (Rebecca) Roete and Son-In-Law David Finkelstein (Brigitte) as well as her grandchildren; Domenic (Heather) Belli, Andrew (Deanna) Belli, Laura (Robert) Hastings, Brittanie Hornsby, Ryan (Jamie) Cox, Jason (Melissa) Cox, Dustin Echeveria, Julie (Jon) Whinnery, Kyle Jacobs, James (Angela) Jacobs, Kelsey (Cody) Beaton, Michael Jacobs, Janay Jacobs, Jennifer Jacobs, Emily Jacobs, Arie Finkelstein, Rachel Finkelstein, Nathan Finkelstein, Coty Schraeder, Lily Wagner, Jackson Wagner and many great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren as well as numerous relatives in Belgium.

She was preceded in death by her Husband, Hubie, her daughter Brigitte and her son-in-law Rick Hornsby. There will be a celebration of life in the summer, date to be announced.

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