Julia King

Julia King
Jan. 2, 1932 - Dec. 30, 2012
Resident of La Selva Beach
JULIA DARST KING, beloved mother of seven died Sunday December 30th. She was 81 years old.

Born in Chicago, Illinois on January 2, 1932, she was the middle daughter of James and Katharine Darst. She and her siblings were raised in St. Louis, Missouri in a politically and socially active family. A known athlete, Julie played basketball, was a gymnast and an award-winning dog racer. Julie met her life-long love, Jerry King after returning from a trip to Europe in March of 1953 and were married nine months later.

In her nearly 59 years of marriage, she was the other half of an amazing, beautiful, funny, smart and kind partnership. She was a never-ending source of entertainment: a world-class storyteller and lover of controversy. She had an eidetic memory for song lyrics, which she sang often, with a particular fondness for the obscure, ridiculous or raunchy.

She was known for her continuous and gracious hospitality - throwing many excellent parties, taking in children, teenagers and occasionally adults who were at loose ends and needed a compassionate and vibrant way station.

After successfully raising seven children, she founded Santa Cruz Friends of Hospice, worked for CASA for Children and extended herself to drive patients receiving cancer treatments. Julie had a sense of style and innovation that flourished beyond convention and self-doubt - taking on projects that pushed her and those around her to see things in a way previously unimaginable. In 1985, she and her husband Jerry donated a 1/4 mile of beachfront property to the State of California park system. They also developed Los Barrancos de Aptos and Trestle Beach and several medical office buildings in Santa Cruz, including 1575 and 1595 Soquel Drive.

Julie King is survived by her brother, Stephen Darst of Brooklyn, her brother-in-law Fred King of Chicago; her three daughters, Jane, Katharine and Julia; her four sons, John, Jr., Stephen, Patrick and Timothy; daughters-in-law, Deanna Seagraves, Ann King, Kelly King and Janey King; sons-in-law, Rich Carbajal and Tony Steinberg; and nine grandchildren, John King III, Richard King, Alison King, Nicholas King, Sean King, Stephen Darst King, Jr., Caroline King, Emily King and Paul Steinberg.

Memorial Services will be held on February 2nd at 10 a.m., in St. Joseph's Church, Capitola.