Maureen White

Maureen White of Santa Barbara died on July 25th in her Hope Ranch home, just one day short of her 100th birthday.

She was born on July 26th, 1924, in Youngstown, Ohio, to Jacob and Rose Eigner. She graduated from the Rayen School and Youngstown University, and became a much-loved high school English teacher at Liberty High School, while raising three children on her own.

Her first marriage ended in divorce. In 1969, she married Bernard White and started a new chapter in what became a true love affair with him. They moved first to Palm Springs and finally to Santa Barbara, where she became active in civic life, serving on the Grand Jury and as Chair of the Women’s Board at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. She received the Woman of Valor award from the Jewish Federation, which she co-founded, and supported the Music Academy, Santa Barbara City College and Lotusland.

But nothing was closer to her heart than her three children and their children and finally, great grandchildren. Probably no one in Santa Barbara spent more time on the beach, starting with the early morning swims for which the family, in their white bathrobes, were known. These were followed by years of evening beach barbecues, with grandchildren sent out to gather driftwood while Bernie and Maureen sat in beach chairs, watching the sunset, sipping their vodkas.

She is survived by children Victoria, Robert and Richard Shorr, grandchildren Sid, Frances and Ike Perkins; Grace, Jake, Tja, Jasper, Atticus, and Anika Shorr. Great-grandchildren Isabelle, Olympia, Beatrice, Carter and Louise Perkins, and Vivian Saxton.