Sally Ann Realy

Sally Ann Realy, 88, of Hesperia, California died after a brief illness on Monday June 3, 2024 at the home of her son, Matt. Her tearful family was with her as she passed.

Sally was born April 5, 1936 in Superior, Wisconsin to Alice Florence (Mason) and Francis Edward Jolicoeur.

A devout Catholic raised in Superior, Sally was 24 when she met Samuel Melvin Realy. After a swoony courtship that included many outings, moonlight picnics, and long-distance phone calls, they married on December 30, 1961.

Together they moved to Michigan and raised three children (Mark, Matthew, and Molly Jo) until Sam’s passing in 1981. Sally often said she could never find someone like him, so she never tried.

The last of nine siblings, all who predeceased her, Sally found great joy in living simply and quietly. Her children and Molly’s daughter Hannah were everything to her. One of her last joys in life was hearing her great-granddaughter sing “Happy Birthday” to her.

Sally would always tell stories of her early years sharing an apartment with her mother and closest brother, Roger, who loved to eat all the cookies their mother would make for holiday gatherings. Her closest sister, Angel, was also her best friend and they spent many Christmases exchanging the same gifts with each other.

Saturdays in Michigan always started with Sally renaming her two youngest “We’ll” and “Let’s” when it was time to clean. Let’s would vacuum while We’ll dusted, all to the neighborhood delight of her loud Hi-Fi playing Charlie Rich or Jimmy Dean.

Always an introvert, Sally’s bravest moment came in February 1982 when she and a friend conquered a snowstorm to drive over an hour in order for Sally to attend a concert by her favorite crooner, Frank Sinatra.

In 1983, Sally moved her family to California to be closer to Angel’s family. She travelled the world and beyond through her ever-growing personal library. She was an avid learner who loved news, current affairs, and weather stories. She was also an armchair consultant for all the news sources from online articles to live streams, often correcting their mispronunciations and errors; and cheering the reporters when they called out the obvious unfairness of life.

Her creativity knew no bounds as she raised her children on arts and imagination. Sally’s consummate gift-giving always included books to inspire faith and creativity, and interactive tokens such as overflowing art kits, electronics sets, and more.

With her encouragement, her children have grown into creative, smart successes. Mark excels with electronics building and telecommunications. Matt has built a candle empire. Molly continues to create art, write, and share journals. And Hannah is raising her family in the same manner.

“Who’s Perry Como?” will be a consistent joke through the generations, as will upside-down bird feeders and duplicate books.

With a love for yellow and blue colors, her living room can be found with ten coats of the same paint as she liked to “freshen things up” every few years.

Not one to dive into current trends, Sally’s style has held up over the decades from her small yet comfortable La-Z-Boy recliner to the corner hutch that held everything from keepsake dishes to her kids’ security cameras.

Her love of cooking has been passed down, but not all her recipes, as evident by Molly’s failure to make egg salad as good as her mom’s.

Christmas was an exceptionally delightful season, with decorations going up the day after Thanksgiving and staying up until mid-January. Soon Easter would follow, and inevitably that summer call of “Found it!” for that one holdover colored egg that had been searched for relentlessly until it was all but forgotten.

In the spring and autumn months, Sally would give her house a deep clean which led to tree trimming and plant pruning on the outside. In summer she read and reread many of her favorite books, and in winter she worked jigsaw puzzles by the fireplace.

She loved the desert wildlife with visits from coyotes and the occasional fox and mountain lion. She could sit with her coffee for hours glancing between the bird feeders, her newest flowers, and whatever book she was currently reading. It was this behavior that led to Hannah’s first word: “Bird.”

Sally was soft, gentle, and quiet, but also strong and determined; filling those in her life with abundant faith and hope in God. Not one to simply placate those around her, if Sally hugged you, it was with sincerity and love.

Her favorite verse was Hebrews 11:1, highlighted in every Bible she owned.

Her family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Sally’s name to the Shrine of St. Jude.

Mutti, you are incredibly missed and always loved.
~Mark/Lu, Matt, Molly Jo, Hannah/Alex and the girls.

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