Catherine Elaine Hayes

C. Elaine Hayes was born on March 26, 1946 and died peacefully at home May 26, 218 in Sun City, California.  She leaves behind her husband of 44 years, Larry Hayes; two daughters and sons-in-law, Lori and Jason Reynolds and Melissa and Michael Dugan; five grandchildren, Noah, Grace, and David Dugan and Emma and Ryan Reynolds; her brother, Robert Gould; a loving group of cousins, the closest of which is Donna Cull; nieces and nephews, and many friends.

Elaine had a very happy and full life. She was born to Raymond Alfred and Catherine Phyllis (Meehan) Gould and grew up with three big brothers, Raymond (John), Robert and Donald.  She was a member of the Tri-Hi-Y Club, and loved swimming, spending time with her friends, and driving around in her Thunderbird.

She met the love of her life while still in High School and after a few years of adventures, they were married in 1973. They loved dancing and traveling, and camped as much as they could.  They welcomed their first daughter, Lori, also in 1973, with their second shortly after. Although they enjoyed living in Anaheim close to extended family and Disneyland, they soon moved to Temecula so they could have more space, including horses to ride. Her horse was the best in the family – much like her, he was calm and affectionate, and enjoyed going for adventures.

Elaine loved traveling – recently she spent nearly half of her time in the motorhome traveling the US, including serving as camphosts for the past few summers in Cantril, Iowa.  She also loved tent camping when she was younger, including exploring caves and shooting. She had the best aim in the whole family!  She was a voracious reader, and went through as many books as she could get her hands on.  And she loved crafting – from painting and drawing to restoring furniture and quilting. She created the mascot for the girls’ school newspaper when they were little, and decorated the house with numerous ceramics that she made from scratch (in addition to the ones she sold). 

She was an extremely loving person, always looking to help and give to her family and friends. She loved serving others, and could regularly be found drinking wine with her friends and neighbors (and sometimes others that passed by) on her front porch.  She will be missed by many.

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