Obituary of Lois A. Saxton

BATH/CANANDAIGUA: Lois A. Saxton died Saturday, November 11, 2017 from complications of lung disease at the F.F. Thompson Hospital in Canandaigua.  She is survived by her husband, Jerry, two children, three step children, five grandchildren, and two greatgrandchildren.  

Lois was born in Salem Oregon, on January 23 1938 to Homer and Marie Worthington.  They lived ten years in Chelan Washington before moving to Spokane Washington where she graduated from North Central High School in 1956.  She married Richard Wickerham in 1958 and was the mother of Lezleigh (1961) and John (1965).

Lois' early professional life included stints as elevator operator, retail clerk, receptionist, dental assistant, mail clerk, and telephone company service rep.  Her true profession was as a licensed optician.  The ultimate stop on her optical path was as manager of a Sears Optical Store in Springfield, Ohio.  In 1988 her store was rated  the number one Sears Optical Store in the nation.  That same year she became a woman of leisure,  married Jerry Saxton, and moved to Bath New York.

The leisure part never materialized as she soon became a full time volunteer.  She served the American Red Cross on a blood services committee and the local Disaster Action Team.  She and Jerry were deployed to New York City during the 9-11 disaster where she managed the canteen at the Family Services Center.

Her home away from home became Family Life Ministries near Bath.  She was the coordinator of volunteers, dining room  manager, and assistant chef.  Other activities included  Ombudsman for the Office for the Ageing, community retirees program co-chair, and county transportation driver.

Her consuming hobby was as a shopper, mostly at thrift shops and yard sales.  She created a 29 year perpetual clothing cycle.  Collected treasures would be arranged in a spare (?) room and divided into three piles.  The first was for personal use and it seemed that her wardrobe turned over at least twice each year.  The second was for donations to friends, friends of friends, or other acquaintances.  A favorite way to donate was to take a family to Salvation Army for complete back to school shopping.  The third pile (sometimes with hand-me-downs from the first pile) was for consignment to high end retail outlets.  Proceeds from the consignments were used to fund the perpetual cycle.

Lois and Jerry moved to Ferris Hills, a retirement community in Canandaigua in 2013.   She soon became The Card Lady.  All known birthdays, anniversaries, or other events or needs at Ferris Hills, church, or elsewhere were honored or served by an appropriate card.  It is no surprise  that thrift stores now became a valuable source of cards.   It was also no surprise that she was inundated with cards during her final illness. 

Her trials are over and her new life begun.  Goodbye for now to an exceptional lady.

There will be no prior calling hours, a memorial service will be held Wednesday, December 6 at 2:00 pm at the Reed Corners Federated Church, 4030 Ste. Rte. 247, Canandaigua. A remembrance reception and fellowship will follow at 3:30 pm at Ferris Hills at West Lake, Canandaigua.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Lois’s name may be made to either the Reed Corners Federated Church, 4030 Ste. Rte. 247, Canandaigua, NY 14424, the Buena Vista Wesleyan Church, 6034 Cty. Rte. 69, Canisteo, NY 14823, or to Focus on the Family, 8605 Explorer Dr. Colorado Springs, Co. 80920.