April 7, 2006

Dolores Lorraine Chaboya Gray, descendant of Evergreen Settlers, remembered

By Melissa Higby
Special to the Times

On December 14, 1916 in the family ranch house that once stood amongst the Evergreen foothills, Dolores Lorraine Chaboya was born surrounded by her family.

Dolores with Melissa Higby’s oldest son, Jeremy, daughter Emma, and newborn Lucas. Photo courtesy of the Higby family.

This joyous birth of the second child of Charles Joseph and Cecelia Agnes Chaboya was only a small moment in history, but marked decades to follow with a continuation of the rich heritage and community pride that her ancestors had introduced to San Jose hundreds of years previous when the Chaboyas decided to make their home in this fertile, rich valley.

Sadly, on March 17, 2006, Dolores passed to the next life. Loving family members gathered, sharing stories of a remarkable woman, recalling a life that enriched so many.

Dolores (Lorrie) was my grandmother and one of the most influential people I have been blessed to know and love. Much has been written locally about this illustrious family and now I’d like to take a moment to introduce our beloved family matriarch and the source of so many of my wonderful memories.

Grandma told stories of her childhood on “grandfather’s prune ranch” with her sister and two brothers. Her grandmother would put on her “mink and emeralds,” insisting Dolores also dress in her finest clothes. They rode to town in a horse and surrey for weekly shopping at Hart’s Department Store, stopping afterward for ice cream cones. I lived with her as a teen in rural Oregon and we followed this same routine. Our best clothes and prettiest makeup were worn for our weekly shopping in town.

Spring was anticipated yearly with the awakening of the earth and young Lorrie made May baskets for her mother. Root beer was made in the old tank house and late at night she heard the tops popping off the bottles. While still young, her family moved to Los Gatos where her father worked landscaping gardens, which enhanced her love of flowers. She and I toured numerous gardens.

She told stories of days at Los Gatos High when she shared classes with Olivia de Havilland, who accidentally knocked Lorrie out with a baseball bat during a game.

Lorrie’s favorite swimming hole was where Highway 17 now sits, including a treacherous rope swing she and friends bravely mastered. She remembered the old light tower in San Jose before the city got electricity.

Grandma married at 17 and had two daughters and a son who remember her as a spirited, adventurous, and strong driven woman. She was divorced and married Grandpa Kenny Gray with whom she had another son. These years I remember with warmth and gratitude. The Gray home was always filled with love, laughter and fabulous food. Sunday breakfasts were spectacular. Her mashed potatoes and gravy were legendary and at nine each night, Grandpa “built” his famous milkshakes.

As a young girl, I often ran away from home and wound up at grandma’s house. She never spoiled me or let me forget my mistakes, yet she always let me know after she got angry with me, I was forgiven. I learned, by her example, to release anger and allow forgiveness.

I moved to Illinois many years ago and still kept my close relationship with her. She visited me, hating our fierce thunderstorms while loving when the snow fell. She was there at the birth of my youngest son and shares her middle name with my oldest daughter. My daughter and I both inherited the Chaboya dimples from her, which she said was “where the angels kissed me.”

She helped advise me with my children and had set a precedent by the way she respected and loved me all my life. I know I’m a better mom myself for the wisdom I received from her.

Grandpa Gray was taken from us 19 years ago on March 16 and is missed terribly. As grandma grew weaker each day, I know he was holding out his hand to her. She left us peacefully only minutes after the anniversary of his death. She was once again surrounded by the family who loved her and wished away her pain and suffering. Her mortal body is gone, but her soul lives in our hearts forever. She rests peacefully with her beloved husband Kenny now, yet we still talk daily in our hearts.