Death of Betty Mae Pendleton Zatarain Daughter of Esther Hoy of Norfolk, VA
Betty Mae Pendleton Zatarain
1933-2007
Born Feb 7, 1933 in Portsmouth, Norfolk, Virginia, Mrs. Zatarain was the 2nd daughter & third child of Leslie Pendleton of Lexington, Kentucky and Esther Hoy Pendleton of Norfolk, Virginia and a direct descendant of American Colonial Royalty families thru both sides of her father's family. Named after her grandmother Delia Elizabeth Eldridge Pendleton who had died when her father was just 15 years of age, two aunts, her father's favorite beloved little sister Delia Elizabeth “Betty” and her father's older sister Mae Louise who had died in her teen years. In addition, her name was a tongue-in-cheek reference to one of her father’s favorite cartoon characters “Betty Boop” of the 1930's Flapper Era, which became a nickname that her father used for her and that her surviving brother still uses in reference to her.
Married for 25 years to Felipe Zatarain, formerly a popular bullfighter of Mazatlan , Mexico , they initially met when on the way to her nursing class, she spied him working in the window of his shoe repair shop. She promptly went home and broke the heel off her shoe as a guise to meet him. Married on Valentine’s Day in 1951, together they made their home in Encanto where they raised their 6 sons and 2 daughters and established themselves in the local commerce as the proprietors of a Mexican restaurant, shoe repair shop, and a dry cleaners.
Baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness in the 1940’s, she was an active member of the Marina Congregation in Chula Vista . As a southerner born in the 1930’s she longed for the era when people dressed up to go about their business and donned gloves, hat & a strand of pearls or a suit & tie and hat and shined their shoes. A long time resident of San Diego , she reminisced about when Encanto was a place of beautiful rolling green hills, trees, and of neighbors who would ride their horses down the street. One of her earliest clear memories was of her family’s cross-country train trip as they moved from Virginia to California . In the past few months her granddaughter, Lori Baclian Maurer, had conducted an in-depth family tree, found long lost relatives & old family photographs of Mrs. Zatarain’s grandparents & great great grandmother via an intense internet search and Mrs. Zatarain had marveled at the absolute wonders of technology that brought society such information in their own homes and also allowed you to transport photos from one place to another across the country in a matter of minutes. As a mother and young grandmother Mrs. Zatarain was an outstanding cook and her children and older grandchildren still remember with great longing many of the culinary delights she could whip up. She had been suffering from a chronic illness, but wanted to take a road trip when she was better and stop when she found a little inn in a small, quiet, out-of-the-way area of the countryside where she could get in a little rest & relaxation far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. She considered herself a country girl at heart, loved collecting dolls, preferred organic & Mexican foods and loved the scent of lavender.
Mrs. Zatarain was found deceased at her home in Chula Vista early Saturday morning. She had died peacefully in her sleep. As a Christian Witness of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mrs. Zatarain firmly believed in God’s promise of resurrection to life eternal in Paradise on earth as found in the Bible. (Luke 23:43 & Psalms 37:29)
She is survived by her children: son Felipe Anthony & daughter-in-law Damaris of Indio, Gregory Hiram of Kearny Mesa, Leslie Steven of Carmel Mountain Ranch, daughter Felisa Deborah and son-in-law Manuel Baclian of Murrieta, son Jeffrey Pendleton and daughter-in-law Magdalena of Eastlake , son Paul David and his long-time companion Patty of Eastlake, Mark Joseph of Murrieta, and Rebecca Anna of Eastlake; 13 grandsons, 9 granddaughters, and 8 great grandchildren; siblings: Mrs. Estelle Virginia Diaz of Chula Vista , Leslie & Diane Pendleton of Encinitas, and Mrs. Rebecca Fagerly of Washington state. Her younger brother Edward Leonard Pendleton preceded her in death.
Join us as we gather together to share our love for her, our memories about her and lift each other up from the sorrow of her passing. A memorial service will be held at Glen Abbey's Chapel of the Roses in Bonita, San Diego, California. The family welcomes all friends and family to attend. Please contact Glen Abbey Mortuary for further information on memorial services. You may also contact her granddaughter Lori Baclian Maurer at [email protected].