Anna J. Vereschagin

Anna J. Vereschagin, a long-time resident of Orland, passed away at Enloe Hospital on Sunday, July 24, 2005 at age 95. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, July 30 at 11 a.m. at the Federated Church in Orland. The entire service will include members of Anna's immediate family offering prayers, readings and musical selections in her honor.

She is survived by her daughters, Virginia Talbot Homer and her son Alex Vereschagin Jr. (Jeri). She has five grandchildren: Craig Vereschagin (Susan) of Orland, Kenneth Vereschagin (Suzanne) of Mountain View, Robert Vereschagin (Cheryl) of Martinez, Terri Talbot Speicher (Rick) of Twin Falls, Idaho and Todd Talbot (Denise) of Northville, Mich. She has 11 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

Anna was born in a home on Potrero Hill in San Francisco on April 7, 1910 to James and Dorothy Popoff. Her parents had recently immigrated from a small village near the Black Sea in Russia. Being a newcomer and speaking very little English, her father struggled to make a living. During Anna's growing years, the family moved frequently: San Francisco, Potter Valley, Sheridan (near Lincoln) and Colusa. Some of these moves included going back to one of these towns or moving from one house to another in the same town. In her memoirs, Anna state: "We younger ones didn't mind moving; we were used to it." She attended Colusa High School for a short time and then ended up graduating from Lincoln High School. She was able to go to Healds Business College in Berkeley for one semester, but then had to quit and work full-time.

It was prearranged by family for Anna to meet her future husband, Alex A. Vereschagin. They married in Sheridan in her family home on May 30, 1931. Right after the ceremony the newlyweds came to Orland and moved in with the extended Vereschagin family. The rest of Anna's life was spent working with this family. She became the bookkeeper for the family business, which grew by leaps and bounds. At one time or the other, the various businesses included: 10 service stations in Northern California, petroleum distribution to farmers, a home appliance dealership, a farm implement dealership, a tire recapping plant, several farms in Glenn County and a large prune dehydrating plant in Hamilton City. For 25 years, Anna did all of the bookkeeping on her own. Her son, Alex Jr., took over after his graduating from college in 1957.

Now, Anna had time for her own pursuits. She became very active in the Orland Women's Improvement Club. She served as President and then went on to be President of the Shasta District. She also held several state offices.

Anna and her husband traveled extensively. They had converted a large bus into a motor home for their land travels. They went to South America, Asia and the South Pacific. They took a six-month trip to Europe and Russia, driving in their own van. They seldom took tours. Instead, Anna researched prior to their trips and served as the tour guide. In later years, they spent the winters in their Airstream trailer at an RV Park in Palm Desert.

Her husband passed away in 1989. Anna then devoted more and more time to her garden. Her backyard, and especially her rose garden, is truly a work of art.

At the age of 83, Anna started writing her memoirs, entitled "Spanning the Years." It is also the history of the Vereschagin and Popoff families. The 250 page book took seven years to complete. Over 100 copies were give out to members of the family. Anna wrote this book because she believed in the old Chinese proverb: "To forget one's ancestors, is to be a book without a source, a tree without a root."

Memorial contributions may be made to the Orland Women's Improvement Club (Community Service Fund) in care of F.D. Sweet & Sons, 825 A Street, Orland, CA 95963.