Tracey Ann Templeton

WATERLOO – Tracey Ann (nee Walters) Templeton was born to James A. and Shirlyene Walters on September 7, 1956 and passed away June 24, 2025 from injuries sustained in a traffic collision near her home in Waterloo, N.Y. She was 68 years old.

Family and friends may call 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Thursday July 24 at Coe-Genung Funeral Home, 46 W. Main St., Waterloo, N.Y. The funeral service will follow at 11:00 a.m. at the funeral home. Additional services will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday August 12 at Sunset Hills Memorial Park, Apple Valley, CA. The graveside service will be 11:30 a.m. Wednesday August 13 in Crestlawn Memorial Park in Riverside, CA.

Tracey lived her early life in Riverside, CA. After her parents divorced, she lived with her father and grandparents, Doris and Lee Lilliencrantz. She attended Monroe Elementary School, Chemawa Junior High School, and Ramona High School. Tracey was an accomplished flutist and member of the marching band where she had many friends. She accepted Jesus at a young age, and was baptized into membership at the First Baptist Church of Arlington, where she actively participated in youth group, music, and recreational activities.

Tracey began what would become a lifelong career in the food service industry, working at the J.C Penney snack counter in the Tyler Mall, then the Dairy Queen and Bob's Big Boy Restaurant in the Magnolia Center area of Riverside. She subsequently moved to Crestline, working in an ice cream store in those beautiful mountains.

She met and later married Ralph Templeton on December 8, 1979. The couple moved to and lived in the Hesperia and Victorville areas of California, where Tracey continued her career in food service working at and managing restaurants, including several sites owned by national chains. Along the way, Tracey and Ralph had a daughter, Marlis Ann Templeton, who later blessed them with a granddaughter, Gabriella "Gabby" Star Templeton.

Tracey and Ralph became parents again when Gabby came to live with them, bringing new energy and joy to their lives. In what would become their final move together, the family moved to Waterloo, N.Y., when she accepted an opportunity to be a regional restaurant manager for Petro Travel Centers. They fit into small-town life, living in a house on Main Street and joining a local church where they made more friends, while Tracey travelled from state to state overseeing the restaurants in her service area.

Eventually, wanting to spend more time with family, Tracey stepped back from regional manager duties, returning to manage a single restaurant, the "Iron Skillet," within the Petro chain. She still travelled from time to time, accepting temporary assignments at other restaurants within the chain and continued in that work until the day of her passing.

Tracey is survived by her husband Ralph Templeton; daughter Marlis Ann Templeton; granddaughter Gabriella Star Templeton; brother James (Kathy) Walters; favorite aunt Elizabeth Jennings; many cousins; and dear friends Danny and Colleen Couse, Keith and Katie Elvert, and James and Sarah Kilgore.

She was predeceased by her parents; and grandparents.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, P.O. Box 1999, Memphis, TN 38101.

Condolences and remembrances may be sent to www.coegenungfuneralhome.com