Ernest S. HOLLINGSHEAD

HOLLINGSHEAD, Ernest S.

''I told you I was sick.''

I was born in a six-bedroom mansion-type house located on a 100-acre Pear Orchard at 3120 Riverside Blvd. on August 1, 1927. I apparently died on May 1, 2010, after living all my life in Sacramento. I attended local schools and married my McClatchy High School sweetheart, Betty Campbell. She preceded me in death after 50 years of marriage. Our youngest daughter Jody Farrow also preceded our deaths. My surviving children are daughters Jan Katsuda (Frank) and Jill Bourque (Jim) and son Jeffery Hollingshead (Cherie). Also survived by granddaughters Jedda Huot, Jade Katsuda, and Jennifer and Jessica Hollingshead, grandsons Jamie Shaw, Zeb and Tyler Farrow, and Jordan Hailey, and great-grandson Jaedon Huot. My surviving siblings are sisters Mae Suhr, Jackie Stanley (Lewis), Evelyn Doud (Charles), Barbara O'Keefe, and Nancy Hollingshead and brother Richard Hollingshead (Julie). A sister, Patty, and brothers Wm. and Robert also preceded my death. Also survived by many nieces and nephews.

I served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and after being discharged I joined the Sacramento Police Department, retiring after 23 years of service. I was a member of Tehama Masonic Lodge, The Scottish Rite Bodies and The Royal Order of Scotland. A charter member of the Motor Escort and Bagpipe Units of the Ben Ali Shrine. A member of the Sacramento Police Officers and The Northern California Peace Officers Associations.

I started hunting when I was 12 years old and have been an avid hunter/fisherman the remainder of my life. I had fond memories of fishing, clamming, crabbing, and abalone diving along the California North Coast. I remember many successful hunting trips with family and friends. I was fortunate to be a member of a large extended family. When I was young it was a weekly event to meet at someone's house for a big potluck dinner. As a family we have continued this tradition and hold many parties and picnics. Some are special occasions and others are just for the hell of it. I think Easter was one of the best and most fun gatherings of the clan. This event was held on my sister's 80 acres, located near Daffodil Hill. I made large paper mache Easter eggs and filled them with goodies for the young ones. They weighed about ten pounds each. The ladies held an Easter Parade to show off the outlandish homemade hats, and the men had a contest to see who could throw a dried cow pancake the furthest. We had scavenger hunts with a long list of items, such as deer and coyote droppings, a nut from a buckeye tree, different colored rocks from abandoned gold mines. We would also have teams that would get a card with a poem on them. The poem would have clues to find the next card and so on. When you found the last clue you had to find a certain object to get your prize. I guess what I am trying to say it was so much fun to belong to this family. All in the family know that nobody had more fun then I did at the gatherings of our clan.

At my insistence there will be no funeral service. I have chosen cremation with a portion of my ashes to be scattered at the spot where my daughter's ashes are located. The remainder of the ashes is to be placed at my wife's gravesite.

As far as any remembrances of me: may I suggest you purchase a bottle of spirits or fine wine and enjoy. May I ask that the next time you lift a pint or drink of your choice, that you raise it high and say, ''This one is for you, Ernie,'' and let it go at that. Ay, I say let it go at that!

I have heard the call of The Grim Piper, I have laid my pipes to rest and I am going home.
- Ernie