A celebration of life will be Saturday, Oct. 17, for Patricia Clara (Jones) Liebenthal, 84, of Ben Lomond, who died Oct. 10 at home with her children by her side.
Mrs. Liebenthal was a third-generation Ben Lomond resident, daughter of local pioneers Billy and Adiene Jones. She attended Ben Lomond Elementary, graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 1942 and attended San Francisco State University. She later graduated from a private business school in San Francisco and worked at a San Francisco post office before taking a job with Santa Cruz Title Co.
She met her husband, Don, in 1942 at a dance in Forest Pool in Boulder Creek. They were married in 1946. In the early years of their marriage, they owned Dickinson’s Market (now Ben Lomond Market). They were active in the Ben Lomond Fire District for many years, and Mrs. Liebenthal was a lifetime member of the Ben Lomond Fire District Auxiliary. Her long family history in Ben Lomond enabled her to provide many photographs and historical information to anyone seeking to learn about the San Lorenzo Valley.
Mrs. Liebenthal was a yard supervisor at Quail Hollow Elementary School and a charter member of the Ben Lomond Civic Club until it disbanded in the early 2000s. She continued to meet with the remaining members for lunch each month. Relatives said she valued her friendships and kept in constant contact with family and childhood friends.
An outdoorswoman, her passion was steelhead fishing. As a young child, she would go down to the San Lorenzo River and catch her limit of steelhead before taking the bus to school. She and her husband took many fishing trips up to the Klamath and Trinity area in Northern California. Most family vacations were spent fishing, hiking and horseback riding in the Sierras, primarily AT Kennedy Meadows.
Later in life, she enjoyed lunching with her friends, going to family gatherings and visiting her friend, Anita Dempsey, in Arizona and Mount Shasta.
Mrs. Liebenthal is survived by her son, Tim Liebenthal, and his wife, Cindy, of Ben Lomond; daughter, Nancy Rice, and her husband, Thom, of Aptos; five grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.
Her husband, Don Liebenthal, preceded her in death in 1992.
A celebration of Mrs. Liebenthal’s life will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Ben Lomond Fire Department, where friends and family members will share stories and memories.
Contributions in Mrs. Liebenthal’s name may be sent to the Ben Lomond Fire Department, 9430 Highway 9, Ben Lomond 95005; to Hospice of Santa Cruz, 940 Disc Drive, Scotts Valley 95066; or to a charity of the donor’s choice.
