Ann Pascault Winchester

Ann Winchester died after a short time in hospice at her son Slade Winchester's home in Minneapolis, Minnesota surrounded by her beloved family. Her care was overseen by Ecumen Home Hospice, a not-for-profit. During her brief time in home hospice she was showered in love by her three children Columbus O'Donnell Winchester, Maud Tarleton Winchester, and John Slade Winchester and their spouses Elizabeth, Lucas Reiner, and Michelle. She is also survived by ten grandchildren: Urris White, Alexandra Tramposh, Wesley Winchester, Liam Winchester, Cody Winchester, Graham Winchester, Sebastian Winchester, Zane Winchester, Livia Reiner, and Rose Reiner, their spouses Daniel Tramposh, Alysha Alloway, Janina Hartley, and Sybil Winchester, as well as four great granddaughters, Bodhi White, Lillie Tramposh, Sadie Tramposh, and Maggie Tramposh. Ann died peacefully with Slade and Maud by her side.

Ann was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Columbus O'Donnell Pascault and Lydia Rouse. They returned to the family home Riverslie on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1931. She attended Easton High School, Smith College, and graduated from the University of Maryland in 1951. She worked at the Rouse Company in Baltimore, Maryland in public relations until she moved to San Francisco, California in 1958 where she worked for the architectural firm Skidmore Owings and Merrill, also in public relations.

Ann married Gordon Winchester in San Francisco in 1959 at St Vincent De Paul Roman Catholic Church. In 1962 they moved from Telegraph Hill to Oakland. Ann was a full-time mother until 1975. During her years at home she was active in the community. Ann and her husband worked on many church committees, especially during the changes that went into effect after Vatican II, becoming early readers, eucharistic ministers, and church council members.

She worked on political campaigns, getting affordable housing built in Oakland, and protesting police brutality. Their children attended public schools. Ann and her husband were very active at Peralta Elementary school, chairing many committees and helping to get a new school built when the building was declared earthquake unsafe.

She and Gordon were very active protesting the war in Vietnam, including helping their church provide sanctuary for a man who refused to serve in the army. Ann and Gordon attended so many meetings and marches, their youngest child went on his first march at one week old.

In 1975 Ann went back to work at The Oakland Office of Community Development. Ann helped families who were being foreclosed on to keep their homes, by working with lending institutions and HUD. In 1979 Ann decided she could be of more help for low-income people by working for a lending institution. The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) had just been passed, mandating that banks and other lending institutions help families.

Ann was hired by Citizens Saving and Loan in San Francisco, as it was one of the first institutions to take CRA seriously and set-up an Affordable Housing Department. Citizens was renamed First Nationwide Bank but was still a S & L and became the first lending institution that could own other lending institutions outside its home state. Ann became a First Vice President working with non-profits in 15 states to make loans for affordable housing. Their department made the first Reverse Mortgages in California as well as live-work loans for artists to keep their properties.

After retiring, Ann and Gordon moved to Washington DC where she consulted on Reverse Mortgages with AARP and influenced HUD to require counseling for families from non-profit agencies before getting a Reverse Mortgage.

She served on various non-profit boards that provided permanent housing for the homeless. Through the years she was active in many Democratic political campaigns, especially Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 campaigns. Ann said that November 4, 2008 was one of the happiest days of her life.

Opera was Ann's great passion. The first opera she saw was Elektra by Richard Strauss at the Met in 1953, the last opera she saw was The Elixir of Love by Gaetano Donizetti at the Minnesota Opera in 2024.

She saw over 350 operas in various opera houses throughout the United States and Europe. She had a special interest in her later years for new opera. Over half the operas she saw were at the San Francisco Opera in the 70's and 80's when all the world's greatest singers performed there.

In lieu of donations or flowers, the family knows that Ann would ask all of you to: "Keep democracy strong and to VOTE in every election".