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NILJA PENN MCDONALD

1920 - 2013

NILJA PENN MCDONALD obituary, 1920-2013, Garden Grove, CA

BORN

1920

DIED

2013

FUNERAL HOME

Westminster Memorial Park Mortuary

14801 Beach Blvd

Westminster, California

NILJA MCDONALD Obituary

McDonald, Nilja Penn, born in Denver , Colorado on Sept 11, 1920. She passed away peacefully at her home in Garden Grove on Oct. 16, 2013 at the age of 93. Nilja was preceded in death by her husband, Warren whom she was married to for 70 years. She is survived by her 2 daughters, Sharyl and Jennifer (Jamie); 2 grandson's, Jeff (Kim) and Mike (Ressi); and 6 great-grandchildren, Trever, Jenna, Tori , Haylee, Dylan and Aiden; 2 sister-in-laws, Bertha Wheeler and Jeane Larsen; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was raised in Southern California but moved to Garden Grove in 1937 where she attended and graduated from Garden Grove High School in 1939. She was Girls League president her junior year and Cheerleader and Student Body officer in her senior year. She then attended Fullerton Junior College. Nilja, President of Eta Gamma chapter of Epsilon Sigma Alpha a women's philanthropic organization. She retired from Crocker Bank, as Vice President of the Huntington Beach Branch in 1985. In retirement she enjoyed golfing, reading, knitting and camping. Her love of family was her greatest joy in life. Rest in peace, Mom, Nilj, Grandma and Great-Grandma Mac, we love you with all our hearts, we will miss you daily. All our wonderful memories will sustain us, until we meet again forever in heaven.

Services will be held on Friday, Oct. 25 , 2013 at Westminster Memorial Park Chapel at 12 noon. Please visit at www.westminstermemorial.com

Published by Orange County Register on Oct. 23, 2013.
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Nilja was a Wonderful & giving women, I will miss her so much, I loved the fact how much family was so important to her . I will always be soo thankful that my kids had Great Grandparents that they loved so very much! She will forever be missed......

Kim Ferguson

November 24, 2013

Aunt Nilja..How blessed I've been to have had you in my life for so long. All of my favorite family memories all seem to involve you! Camping at Robinson Creek, Doheny, weekend getaways and of course, our field trips to all of the casinos! We had so much fun. You were beautiful inside and out and I will cherish all of the memories I have forever. Love you and miss you so much.

Marla Beihl

November 13, 2013

God led my walks to Garden Grove. It was a wondrous journey and very memorable. For I met and personally became acquainted with you and later on called you 'My Queen'. So much loved by your family, relatives, friends, neighbors, gardener, and caregiver. Let each line of this verse of love reminds how much important you are to my heart.

My Queen Nilja

How I'd wish I'd taken care of
My queen more months and years.

I called her my queen because of her
Elegant beauty and dignity.

I like how she spoke and smiled
Especially at five in the afternoon.

When the phone rings t'was a music to her ears.

A bright shining stars that lighted
The McDonalds' palace for years.

So loved by all in her family of four generations.

She was such a sweet and gentle woman
Even when she was sick in bed.

I couldn't hold on to my tears

Just by the thought that my queen is gone forever.

Connie Blanquisco

November 12, 2013

i love you great grandma mac. i am going to miss watching baseball with you all the time and just spending quality fun time with you. you were the greatest great grandma i could have ever asked for. thank you for everything you did for me and all the great memories i have. love you
-trever

Trever Ferguson

November 12, 2013

Dear Aunt Nilja what wonderful memories I have. I could not wait to come to California each year. The house was full of laughter and love. I could not have asked for a better aunt, uncle and cousins. I remember you telling us if we went to sleep, you would get us Movie Magazines, I don't know if we went to sleep but we got the magazines. You were an inspiration to all , so loved and a wonderful sister to my dad. The time we spent in the later years with us all together again will be cherished forever. You will always be my favorite Aunt! Heaven has a beautiful Angel!

Patti Larsen Conway

November 11, 2013

Mom, you were the best Mom a girl could ever have and I thank God everyday for him to have chosen me to be your daughter. You were not only my Mom, but my friend and confidante. I will so cherish the times we played golf together, went on vacations and of course our daily conversations when I would call you on my way home from work. You were such a great listener and always gave me such great advice. You taught us that faith, family and friends come first. I will cherish everyday that we had together. I love you more than words can say and you will always be in my heart. My memories will sustain me until we meet again one day in heaven.

Your Daughter Jennifer

November 11, 2013

Sharyl, I'm sorry I didn't have the pleasure of knowing your mom & dad. I know they were wonderful parents. I love each & every story I've ever heard about them. You are living example of what they thought you. You have the great values, the unconditional love & the ability to touch others lives in a positive way everyday. Losing your your parents is one of the hardest things you'll ever be faced with. But you know you will be with them & Jim again one day.I hope you find strength in knowing I care. Love, Sharron

Sharron Richards

November 10, 2013

I am glad so incredibly glad that I will be able to tell my kids that I had a great grandma that was 93! That's crazy. You have been an amazing great grandma, words cannot describe how beautiful you are inside and out. When I prayed with you before your passing it hit me that I won't have anybody that can cheer me up, or i won't have my great grandma around anymore. But I guess great grandpa really misses you and he needed you, your now reunited with the love of your life! I'm glad god has put me in your life, I'm also happy you wouldn't be any more pain because heaven is a wonderful place where you will live forever. Your smile was very contagious and even if you weren't in the best mood you always made sure nobody would notice. I will never forget all the memories I have shared with you. I miss you more and more each day. I love you very very much my sweet guardian angel. See you later

Haylee Ferguson

November 6, 2013

Grandma
Thanks for always being my biggest fan and loving and caring for me no matter what. You always gave the best advice and most of the time I was smart enough to listen and learn. We have so many great family memories because of you and I can
cherish them forever. You were no doubt the best grandma in the history of the world second to none. Thanks grandma for all the lessons learned and all the best memories I will never forget

Love you forever
Mike your favorite grandson

Mike Ferguson

November 6, 2013

Grandma Mac, I am very blessed to call you my great grandma. You lived a very long and blessed life with too many great memories to share, but one in particular will always be my favorite. When I was a little boy and when I use to live in garden grove, I use to come over and visit and have what I would always have, it was a balone sandwich and I would look forward to that every time I went over to your house. This isn't goodbye, and Jesus just needed a new angle in heaven and he got one. I will always love you and never ever forget you.
-Dylan Ferguson

Dylan Ferguson

November 5, 2013

Hi jenna I love you good Cheer bastball games school good Angles Games Mike Trout Donner Lake vacation miss you heaven grandpa Mac and jim I love you from Jenna ferguson

November 5, 2013

grandma mac you lived a good life. i love you forever i will miss you for the rest of my life. i remember at lake tahoe i used to sit on the dock with you and grandpa. you will be in my memories till im very old. tell grandpa mac i love him
love you

aiden ferguson

November 4, 2013

Hi my angel. It's been rough without you physically here lately, and I miss you dearly. I will never forget all the amazing memories we shared together. You brought so much love, support, and care to our family. Nothing will be the same without you here, smiling. I love you grandma. Please watch over our whole family. Give yourself and grandpa Mac a big hug and kiss for me. Love you forever!

Tori Ferguson

November 3, 2013

How very blessed I have been to have been able to have such a wonderful, beautiful Aunt as my Aunt Nilja. She was such a great example of what a loving wife and mother should be. She was always loving and all of us nieces felt that love. She will be truly missed by all who were fortunate enough to know her. Rest in peace my dear Aunt Nilja.

Karen Gjertsen

November 2, 2013

Grandma,
There are too many things I will miss. I am blessed to have a Grandma that was so generous with her time and always put us first. You left me so much, I hope I can pass it all on to my Kids and Grandkids. I Love You and will see you again someday......
Jeffrey

October 30, 2013

Sharyl, I so wish that I had known your mom and dad. Everyone, without exception, has said such lovely things about them. I am sure that all of them are true as can be seen in their daughters. Your parents must have been just fabulous people. I send you love, warm wishes and many hugs of comfort.

Sara Klancke

October 27, 2013

Dear Nilja,

You will always have a special place in my heart. If we could all strive to be more like you, it would be a a better world.

Lovingly,
Evy

Evy Williams

October 25, 2013

Mom with out a shadow of a doubt you have been the best Mom that a girl could only dream about. you have been my inspiration, my Mom, My friend, you gave me what everyone wishes they had in a Mom.. I feel as If I am the luckiest one of all... I always put this on my Facebook page on Mother's day and On your Birthday because it really states just how I feel " The Love between a Mother and Daughter is forever. It is a bond of the strongest kind. It is a Love of the Present, Interwoven with Memories of the Past and Dreams of the future. It is an unconditional, forever kind of Love." That bond is what we had . Having a Mom like mine is more than a Gift from God.. She was a blessing to us all.. Mom you can be proud of your family as I know you are You were and always will be the strength, the love that we will always have with us.. Thanks for the memories and for just being you.. My Mom, my role model, my friend... until we meet again.. we have the best memories of all.. love you..

Your Daughter Sharyl

October 25, 2013

Blessings to the McDonald-Ferguson family and friends. As I told you, Sharyl, your mom was an example to me by being a forerunner for women's success in the banking industry. I was able to grasp that, but being the tall, slender, stylish lady was beyond my reach! Your video documents the fact that she was, in all aspects, beyond beautiful as a girl, a mother, and a grandmother. Not only that, it appears that she took GGHS and the Argos by storm. I know how much you will all miss her, but there is poetic romanticism and hopefully comfort, in two lives well lived, two loved, and in love, so deeply. . .together again.

Bill & Trudi Walker

October 23, 2013

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Westminster Memorial Park Mortuary

14801 Beach Blvd, Westminster, CA 92683

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14801 Beach Blvd, Westminster, CA 92683

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