Ellen Louise Fitzsimmons Gillham

1937 - 2023

Ellen Louise Fitzsimmons Gillham, 86, formerly of Exeter, California, passed away peacefully on Dec. 2, 2023 in Templeton, California.

Ellen was born in Benton Harbor, Michigan and subsequently raised in Menlo Park, California. She attended college at the University of Oregon, in Eugene, where she met her future husband, John Gillham, a US Navy Veteran. By the time Ellen's husband finished graduate studies and student teaching at the University of Oregon, Ellen was already the busy mother of six children!

An opportunity for Ellen's husband to teach at Cal Poly University in San Luis Obispo brought the family to the central coast of California. Ellen had often dreamed of owning her own business and in 1976, she opened Creekside Toys & Costumes in downtown San Luis Obispo, across the creek from the historic Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa. Many people will remember the stuffed teddy bear outside the store, affectionately known as Bubble Bear, who blew bubbles for excited children and amused adults.

After closing the toy store, Ellen moved to Exeter, California where she began her second career, teaching children throughout schools in the San Joaquin Valley of California. Ellen's passion was helping to educate the children of migrant farmworkers among the rural towns of Tulare County.

Ellen lived her final years at the Vineyard Hills Health Center in Templeton, California. Despite her disabilities, she remained cheerful and positive about life. Ellen enjoyed frequent visits from her children, grandchildren, and the little birds outside her bedroom window. Ellen was a treasured resident of the care center and bonded with loving nurses and hospital staff, who became her extended family.

Ellen Gillham was preceded in death by her firstborn grandson, Michael Gillham Jr.

Ellen is survived by her six children, Patrick (Tammi) Gillham, Michael (Amanda) Gillham, Molly (David) Gillham-Geirman, Kathleen Gillham, Sean (Christina) Gillham, and Timothy Gillham, as well as five grandchildren, Evan, Amy, Emily, Skyler, and Jonna.