Jessie Nell Rizzuti of 1976 Scarpelli died Thursday, March 6, 2008, at her home. She was 80.
Memorial contributions may be made to Walla Walla Catholic Schools.
Jessie was born April 6, 1927, in the community of Muddy Creek near Haines, Ore., to Leo K. and Edna C. (Weise) Adams. She attended Muddy Creek School, which stood on a corner of her family’s ranch, from 1st grade until her graduation in 1944.
Following graduation, she moved to Baker City, staying with family friends while working at Baker State Bank. Jessie developed several treasured friendships with her co-workers there, staying in touch with them over the years.
Following her father’s death in 1949, Jessie moved with her mother and her brother Lyle, who was injured during World War II, to Walla Walla to be closer to the Veterans’ Hospital. She began work at Baker Boyer Bank and worked there until her marriage to Leonard J. Rizzuti and the birth of her two sons. Her skills in financial matters, however, were still required. She became bookkeeper for the family’s farming enterprises, a job she held until shortly before her death.
A busy homemaker and bookkeeper, Jessie still found time for personal pursuits. She loved discovering new plants for her flowerbeds and watching the quail and hummingbirds who visited her yard. She was a life member of Beta Sigma Phi, Nu Master Chapter, and held her time and service with her sorority sisters as time enjoyably well spent. A childhood love of adventure and seeing new places carried over into her adult life. If she and her husband weren’t adding another country to their list of places traveled, their motor home was rumbling down a highway somewhere in the United States. Jessie was an accomplished oil painter, specializing in landscapes and old buildings. Her signature creations were her “Jessie’s Johns,” paintings of a variety of outhouses, many customized to reflect the lifestyle of the family in whose “facilities” they were displayed. Her friendships with her fellow artists and their many adventures traveling to art shows were very dear to her. Most precious to Jessie, however, was her time spent with her grandchildren: shopping and discussing art with her granddaughter, reading books and just visiting with her grandson.
Jessie is survived by her husband, at the home; two sons and daughters-in-law, Gary and LeeAnn Rizzuti, and Randy and Sherry Rizzuti, all of Walla Walla; and two grandchildren, Katy and Ryan.
She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Lyle E. Adams.
Used with permission from: The Record Courier, Baker City, Oregon, March 20, 2008
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor