Audrey Jean Zappia, 100 years young, of Oak View, CA passed away peacefully on March 9, 2024 in Oxnard, CA. Audrey was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Lucille Hamilton and Frank Zappia on October 6, 1923. As a child, Audrey spent many summers at her grandparents home, where she recalls that her grandfather built a chicken coop that was much larger than the family farmhouse. She told stories of hauling water and wood since they did not have indoor plumbing, and used a wood stove at that time. She went to High School in Grand Rapids and graduated in 1940.
At age 18, she came to California by train to join her mother, and began working in Los Angeles as a clerk assisting in the war effort. A few years later, she moved to Ventura where she became fast friends with Betty and Betty’s boyfriend Earl. They then introduced her to Herb (Loren) Herbison one day while shopping on Main Street in Ventura. She fondly recalls those early years and her “girls trips” with Betty to Santa Barbara to go shopping and to lunch.
Audrey later married Loren (Herb) Herbison and she went on to have two boys, Roger and Jimmy. She and Herb brought their young boys to Oak View and built their Sears Roebuck home on the Herbison Family peach farm. It was at this time, when she was 35, that she was forced to finally learn to drive in order to “get to town”.
Audrey’s vibrant personality helped her to begin making additional lifelong friends and she became very involved in local women’s clubs, including being a founding member of San Buenaventura Women’s Club, El Camino Women’s Club, which includes an honorary lifetime membership, and the Oak View Women’s Club, where she lead the charge to participate in innumerable volunteer activities to benefit the communities of Ventura and Oak View, as well as local Veteran’s groups and their family members. The amount of hours she spent cutting coupons to send to military families, is incalculable. She also spent many years volunteering at Community Memorial Hospital as a Candy Striper, or a “pink lady”.
Audrey worked for and retired from the County of Ventura. She had such dedication to this community.
Audrey is preceded in death by her mother Lucille, her husband Loren and her youngest son James. She is survived by her eldest son, Roger, Grandchildren Noe, Aaron, Jason, Andy and Kristy and Great-Grandchildren Kasey, Kelsey, Jacob, Nathan, Noah and Emma, and her Great-Great grandchildren Ezra, Frankie Bea Audrey, and Alana.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Audrey’s honor may be made to the Oak View Women’s Club, the San Buenaventura Women’s Club or the El Camino Women’s Club.
Funeral Services will be held at Joseph P. Reardon Funeral Home & Cremation Service, 757 E. Main Street, Ventura CA 93001 at 12:00 pm, Friday, March 29, 2024.