Anita Diane Underwood

Anita Diane Underwood, 78, Retired City Clerk, Mother and Friend. The daughter of Russell and Anita Wilkes, Anita Diane Underwood was born and raised in Pasadena, California. As a young girl, she and her sister Chris enjoyed visiting Balboa Island (CA), Camp Nelson (CA), and the ranch in Hinkley (CA). Always up for adventure, Anita and her best friend “Del” had a lot of fun- at home, the beach, everywhere! Summer jobs included selling shoes at Bullock’s Wilshire (Pasadena) and scooping ice cream at a local shop. Anita graduated from John Muir High School in 1955 and attended Occidental College. At this time she met Brad Underwood at the Pasadena Library and the couple were married on August 4, 1956. Anita and Brad have two daughters, Sharon Urch and Lynn Underwood and this last August the couple celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary. After she married, the couple lived in California, Washington DC and North Carolina. Across this time she explored the places where she lived- taking in museums, historic sites, national parks, and events. Some of the places she worked include General Dynamics/Astronautics and Burroughs Corporation, the Chamber of Commerce of the United States, Jet Propulsion Laboratories, Circle Seal Supply Company, Senate Office and the Federal Trade Commission. Anita and Brad returned to California, first to Long Beach where their first child Sharon was born, and settled in San Diego where they lived in Hillcrest, El Cajon and ultimately La Mesa. Her second daughter Lynn was born and after a few years, in February, 1969, Anita took a position in the Recreation department working for the City of La Mesa. With young daughters, her job with recreation was a wonderful adventure. Her daughters recall swimming, tumbling class and helping her boil and color hundreds of Easter eggs for the annual La Mesa egg hunt! After five years she started working in the Finance department, followed by Administrative offices. She joined the city Clerks department in October 1982. In January, 1984, she was appointed City Clerk and elected official. Her family and friends all voted for her- a top notch and trustworthy official! In May of 1987 she earned a certified Municipal clerk designation from International Institute of Municipal Clerks. Anita was a member of, and served in key roles for, the International Institute of Municipal Clerks, City Clerks Association of California; Southern California City Clerks Association and San Diego County City Clerks Association. A supporting and loving mother, as her daughters were growing up she was involved in Girl Scouts, Backyard Swim, swim teams and equestrian organizations. Civic and community minded, she served as a member, and president, for both the La Mesa Historical Society and Soroptimist International of La Mesa. In addition, she served on the board of the La Mesa Beautiful Committee and was a member of the League of Women Voters. At the City she made life-long friends and truly enjoyed comradery and contributing to a great community. From the city council meetings, elections to special occasions such as the La Mesa Games and the Winning of La Mesa, she imbued and enjoyed the spirit of cooperation and respect. Adventurous of spirit, she loved cooking family favorites or foods from around the world. An expert pie maker from her youth, we all looked forward to her pies. She had a lot of friends all who know she had a great sense of humor. She enjoyed time with her grandchildren and loved animals. Her passion for pugs earned her the moniker “pug lady”, a title she’s passed on to her daughter Lynn. The environment and animals were especially important to Anita, and she was a role model and donor. In the pantheon of animal family and friends they all won a piece of her heart. Anita loved to travel, enjoying family camping to trips across Europe. In recent years she took road trips across the south west and took to the high seas, cruising to Mexico, Alaska (Sheryl joined us!) and Hawaii (and back) several times. On the Hawaii trips we encountered rough seas and Anita was unfazed proving to be an old salt with strong sea legs! In 2014 she took a favorite trip to Kauai’s north shore, to stay at Hanalei Bay, enjoying the beaches, tropical trade winds and afternoons relaxing under the Ironwood trees. Anita Diane Underwood, 78, of La Mesa, former Pasadena area, retired City Clerk, died Saturday November 12, 2016. Anita is survived by her husband Bradley Underwood, sister Chris Ohs, daughters Sharon Urch and Lynn Underwood, son-in-law Scott Wilhelme, and her grandchildren Kiersten Urch, Taylor Urch and Andrew Urch, sister in-law Dusty (and Larry) Cernak, niece Leah (and Anthony) McIvor, cousin Sheryl Eaton, Carolyn Pierce. Animal friends include Stanley (terrier mix), Porter (pug), Ollie (Olmstead, pug), Morgan (Extraordinaire, Chihuahua), Harry (bunny), Ulysses (bunny) and Bubbles Makai (parakeet). Service Details Cremation is planned with ashes to be scattered at sea. A Celebration of Life is scheduled for November 29, 2016 from 4:00-7:00pm at Nan Couts Cottage, 5045 Memorial Dr, La Mesa, CA 91942.