Charles Splaine and Patricia McInerney Isherwood

Charlie and Pat Isherwood both grew up in typical middle-American households but had ambitions to do and see more. They met in October 1960 in Stanford, Calif., and were married three months later. They did, indeed, live happily ever after. Charlie was born on the East Coast, in Fall River, Massachusetts. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Yale University and an MBA from Harvard College. During his years in the Marines he was stationed in Japan. He and Pat returned regularly to that country and became collectors of Japanese wood-block prints.Pat was born in Los Angeles, raised in the Westwood neighborhood, and lived the SoCal life of the '50s , which included hanging around on the beach in Malibu with the real-life Gidget. She went to Stanford and shortly after graduating met a talented young engineer who had just started his career in the semiconductor industry at Fairchild Semiconductor. Charlie had mustered out of the Marines in San Francisco and knew then, hating the New England cold, that the Bay Area was his place. He moved to Silicon Valley, which was then known as the Santa Clara Valley and was still largely orchards. In the summer, Charlie would stop and buy big bags of cherries on his way home to the family in Saratoga from his job at American Microsystems Inc., a company he joined in 1968. AMI was a custom chip manufacturer which, among its many achievements, made the chips for Atari's "Pong". The Isherwood kids were the first on the block to watch the dot move across their TV screen. AMI was eventually acquired by another company and Charlie then moved on to International Microelectronic Products. Pat began volunteering for the Hospice of the Valley in its early years, doing bookkeeping and accounting, and soon transitioned to a staff position. They both retired in 1997.Pat and Charlie weren't from the Bay Area, but they were very much of it. Foodies before the term was invented, they experimented both at home and at restaurants with cuisines from all over the world. Die-hard 49ers season-ticket holders (eternally grateful to the inventor of Gortex, and the proud owners of the license plate GO 9ERS, stolen only once), every year after the opening home game, they and their friends had dinner at the original Jack's in San Francisco. Together they enjoyed travel, reading and the Rolling Stones. Charlie reading: Melville, Conrad and Orwell and every single book written about World War II. Pat: Any mystery; she possibly read every one published between 1960 and 2000, and was a member of five libraries, to which she paid weekly visits.After Pat died in April 2020, Charlie would frequently say that it was "the worst thing that had ever happened to him." He soldiered on for three more years and died on March 1, 2023. The family is eternally grateful to caregivers Vangie and Necita, whose dedicated care allowed both Pat and Charlie to remain in their home.Charlie and Pat are survived by their family: children Carol Isherwood Collison; Charles Splaine Isherwood (husband, Ercument Kenger), Sarah Isherwood Tellez (husband, Kip Tellez) and grandchildren Spencer Collison (wife, Anna); Nate Collison, Carmen Tellez and Catrina Tellez. In lieu of flowers, Pat would encourage donations to Hospice of the Valley. And, if you feel inclined, please lift a glass to Pat and Charlie at 5 o'clock, wherever you are.