Erin's and Steve's wedding (December 31, 1994)
Cor's and Dee's wedding at Bass Lake (July 29, 2006)
Jim, Claudia, Krissy, Kenon, Rob
Will and Joshua
Kenon's and Krissy's Wedding, (August 4, 2007)
Corrigan, Kenon, Tat, Will, Erin, Joshua
River Meadows, Oregon (Thanksgiving, 2002)
Erin, Claudia
Joshua, 2 years old
River Meadows, Oregon (Thanksgiving, 2001)
THE PARENTS:
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
On June 13, 2003, Jim finished his 35th year of teaching English at Granada High School and decided to retire after a long and very happy career. As of July 1, 2009, he has finished his twenty-sixth year of teaching English a few hours weekly at Las Positas Community College. By the way, he was named the Livermore School District Teacher of the Year for 1996 and the part-time Teacher of the Year at Las Positas in 2004.
He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in November of 2001, and, after losing 70 pounds, he began eight weeks of radiation treatment at the East Bay Cancer Center in Hayward, CA in September of 2002 and finished his treatments just before Thankssgiving. He then underwent cancer surgery on April 20, 2009 and is feeling fine at this date.
Jim was born on May 21, 1944 at St. Joseph's Hospital in Yakima, Washington. He was the youngest child of Winnifred (better known as "Mike") and Judge Robert Willis, his brother also being named Robert and his sister Lynn.
Jim attended St. Paul's Grade School and was the valedictorian of the 1962 graduating class at Marquette High School. He played basketball for two years and baseball for four years while at Marquette. He was also named the Exchange Club 1962 "boy of the year" - an award given to the one outstanding scholar-athlete of the four Yakima high schools.
He entered the Jesuits in 1962 and left the Order in November of 1967. He graduated from Gonzaga University in 1968 with majors in Latin and philosophy and minors in Greek and English, and he was a pitcher on the 1968 Gonzaga team.
Jim and Claudia Foltz married on August 24, 1968 and moved to Livermore the week after their wedding.
Jim's e-mail address is jimwillisca@comcast.net
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
In September of 2003, Claudia began her first year as a teacher, teaching art two days per week at All Saints' Catholic Elementary in Hayward. After that first year, she decided to, instead, teach private students in Livermore, as well as a few art classes through the Livermore Area Recreation and Park District. She is thoroughly enjoying the experience.
Claudia was formerly in charge of religious education at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, in Livermore, and in June of 1999, she finished up her degree in art from California State University. For the past few years, she has consistently had various art pieces accepted into student shows at Cal State, and she has won numerous juried awards, including ones from the Hayward Art Council and the Northern California Watercolor Association, as well as from the University. She has also been commissioned to do a series of bronze pieces for St. Andre's Home in Maine. She was granted, in May of 1998, a $500 scholarship by the Cal State Art Department, one of only two such scholarships given.
As regards her work at St. Charles, the program of family catechesis she developed was recognized in 1997 as one of the best in the U.S., and St. Charles was thus one of five parishes in the country to be given the prestigious Mustard Seed Award. Claudia was presented that award at a national convention in early 1997 in Minneapolis.
In October of 1998, Claudia had a one-person art show (her senior project) at Cal State, Hayward. The theme of the show was breast cancer, and the response to the show was phenomenal. The Oakland Tribune ran a large article, with a picture, about the show, and the San Francisco Chronicle ran a picture.
She was born as Claudia Foltz on May 17, 1948 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, Washington. She was the oldest of the eight Foltz children born to Lorraine and Leo Foltz, the others being Greg, Mike, Mo, Megan, Kik, Colleen, and Richard.
She attended school through the fifth grade at St. Aloysius Grade School in Spokane, and then the family moved to Portland, Oregon so her father, Leo, could obtain his doctoral degree in education from the University of Portland.
Her high school years were spent at St. Mary's Academy in Portland, and she attended two years at Gonzaga University in Spokane before marrying Jim Willis on August 24, 1968 at the Jesuit Retreat House chapel in Portland.
Claudia and Jim have lived in Livermore, California since 1968 and have raised their five children there.
Her e-mail address is claudiawillis@comcast.net
THE CHILDREN:
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
Erin, the oldest Willis child, finished her sixteenth year of teaching Spanish at Jesuit High School in Portland, Oregon in June of 2009, and, in the summer of 1998, she completed a Master's Degree in Higher Education Administration from Portland State University in June. She is married to Steve DeKlotz, the Dean of Student Life at Concordia University in Portland. They became proud parents of Joshua DeKlotz on August 19, 1999, of Will DeKlotz on June 2, 2002, and of Noah DeKlotz on June 29, 2005! (Look for pictures on Joshua's, Will's and Noah's pages.)
Erin, like all the other Willis children, was born at Kaiser Hospital in Walnut Creek, California. Her day of birth was March 16, 1970.
She attended Portola Elementary, Sunset Elementary, Mendenhall Middle School, and Granada High School, all in Livermore, California. She graduated from Granada in 1988 with a g.p.a. of about 3.9.
Erin graduated from Gonzaga University, where she majored in Spanish, and was given the Alumni Award as the Outstanding Graduate of the Class of 1992.
She and Steve have been blessed with three sons, Joshua, Will, and Noah. Look for information about them in the Grandchildren section.
Erin and her husband, Steve, have the following e-mail address: deklotz@aol.com
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
Son #1, Robert, has been working with autistic children in the Bay Area since 1994. In 1998, he was accepted into PhD programs in psychology at Columbia, the University of Oregon, and Santa Barbara State College, but he chose to put that "on hold." He completed a Master's degree in 2008.
At present (July of 2006), he works for Stepping Stones in San Mateo as a trainer of teachers of autistic children. He lives in San Francisco.
Robert was born on November 2, 1971 at Kaiser Hospital in Walnut Creek, California. He attended Sunset Elementary in Livermore, as well as Mendenhall Middle School, and he graduated from Granada High School in 1990. While a freshman at Granada, he played football, basketball, and baseball, but after that year, he concentrated on basketball alone.
Like his parents and sister before him, he then attended Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, from which he graduated in 1994, having majored in Special Education and having the highest college g.p.a. of all the Willis children.
Rob's e-mail address is: willis_rob@hotmail.com
all-star team in North Carolina (Aug. '96)
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
In May of 2001, Corrigan, son #2, graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver with a Bachelor's degree in Journalism. He recently finished his fifth year of teaching P.E. (in his first year, he also taught psychology) at Granada High School in Livermore, having completed his teaching credential in an online program through National University during the summer of 2003. He was a student teacher at Granada in the Spring of 2004, was the assistant freshmen baseball coach at Granada in 2002, the head J.V. coach in 2003, the Varsity pitching coach in 2004-2008, and the Varsity head coach in 2009.
In June of 1998, Corrigan finished his sophomore year at Ohlone College in Fremont, California where he was one of the pitchers on their baseball team. He had a 7-1 record that year and was named first-team all-conference as well as Ohlone's Pitcher of the Year.
In September of 1999, he began his second year at Metropolitan State College of Denver, from whom he has received a 2/3 scholarship, totalling about $9,300 per year. His pitching record at Metro in 1999 was 6-4. His g.p.a. at Ohlone, by the way, was 3.4, and he had a 3.6 in his first year at Metro State.
Corrigan was born at Kaiser Hospital, Walnut Creek, California on October 24, 1977. He attended Sunset Elementary School, Mendenhall Middle School, and Granada High School, all in Livermore. He graduated from Granada in 1996 and was the star pitcher on the Matador baseball team his senior year, with an 8-2 record. He also played basketball as a freshman. He was one of two pitchers named to the national all-star team at the Babe Ruth World Series in North Carolina in August of 1996. For more exciting details of that, see the Christmas letter found elsewhere on this blog site.
Corrigan married Dee Midtaune on July 29, 2006 at Bass Lake in central California. They were blessed with the arrival of Bryce Colin Willis on May 7, 2008.
Corrigan's e-mail address is corriganwillis@hotmail.com
(Last modified on July 1, 2009)
Kenon graduated from Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, did his student teaching at Rogers High School in Spokane, and began his teaching career, teaching Math, at Douglas High School in Minden, Nevada in the Fall of 2003, where he was also the head J.V. basketball and head J.V. baseball coach. In September of 2005, he began teaching Math at San Ramon High School, was the J.V. basketball coach for two years, and has been the head Freshmen basketball coach since 2007.
During his freshman year, he pitched for the "Zags" and had the second lowest E.R.A. on the staff. Gonzaga is a member of the WCC, along with the University of San Francisco, Santa Clara University, St. Mary's College, the University of Portland, Loyola Marymount University, the University of San Diego, and Pepperdine University. He decided, after much serious thought, to give up his college baseball career to more fully appreciate the "total college experience."
He was elected Sophomore Class Senator and spent his junior year at Gonzaga in Florence (Italy), a tremendous experience. He was an R.A. in a Gonzaga dorm during his senior year.
In June of 1998, Kenon graduated from Granada High School, where he was an honor student and a starting guard on the varsity basketball team. At the end of the '98 season, he was voted the MVP by his basketball teammates and was also given the Greg Gomes Matador award, the coach- picked award given to the one player who demonstrates team spirit, hard work, good sportsmanship, and selflessness. Traditionally, the recipient has been a non-starter. He was also the ace pitcher on the varsity baseball team, was voted by the players as the team's MVP his junior year and again during his senior year, and made the TCAL all- league team both years in baseball and one year in basketball. He was also privileged to be the only sophomore called up to the varsity basketball team in 1996 - a team that won Granada's first NCS (North Coast Section) championship and got all the way to the Northern California state championship game at the Oakland Coliseum, losing by one point to Grant of Sacramento.
In May of 1998, Kenon won the prestigious Livermore -Granada Boosters' Olympian Award given to the outstanding scholar-athlete from the two high schools . The Award includes a $1,000 scholarship. He also won the Boosters' Essay Scholarship of $500, the Sue Galles Scholarship ($1,000), the George P. Scotlan Award ($5,000 over four years, presented by the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum) and numerous academic scholarships from Gonzaga University, totalling $9,500 per year. His high school g.p.a. was 3.84, and his SAT score was 1400.
Kenon was born on October 26, 1979 at Kaiser Hospital in Walnut Creek, California. Following in the footsteps of his three older siblings, he attended Sunset Elementary in Livermore, as well as Mendenhall Middle School, and then Granada.
On August 4, 2007, Kenon and Krissy Darrell were married in a beautiful wedding ceremony at St. Michael's Catholic Church in Livermore. They even rode around town in a horse-drawn carriage after the ceremony!
Kenon's email address is williskenon@hotmail.com
THE GRANDCHILDREN:
Steve and Erin DeKlotz are very proud to announce the birth of their first child, Joshua Patrick DeKlotz. Joshua was born on August 19, 1999 in Portland, Oregon. He weighed in at 7 lbs., 10 oz. and was 20 inches long. Welcome to the world, Joshua!
What a smile! (with Aunt Thu)
Visiting Great Uncle Robert and Great Aunt Pat in Connecticut
Josh (about 2 1/2) and Papa Steve
Josh at age 2 years and 9 months
Joshua (Thanksgiving, 2001), enjoying the snow with Mom and Grandma Claudia (Maia)!
Will,
We are thrilled that you, William James DeKlotz, were born in Portland, Oregon on June 2, 2002 at 6:30 a.m. You weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces and were joyously welcomed into life by your mother, Erin, your father, Steve, and your two-year old, big brother, Joshua.
By the way, your grandparents and your three uncles are very happy and proud of you also. I was told that you have dark hair and are already very curious about your new environment. I know you are very handsome and very smart!
I think you will soon start studying Latin and calculus and reading plays by Eugene O'Neill and novels by Graham Greene, as well as throwing a baseball about 85 m.p.h. (Uncle Corrigan is eager to work with you as a pitcher.) Not much to ask from a proud grandpa.
Pictures of you will soon be at this site, believe me! So please tell your dad to get that camera rolling. Welcome into the world, Will.
We love you,
Grandma and Grandpa Willis, Uncle Robert, Uncle Corrigan and Uncle Kenon
Steve and Erin DeKlotz are very proud to announce the birth of their third child (and third son!), Noah Michael DeKlotz. Noah was born on June 29, 2005 in Portland, Oregon. He weighed in at 7 lbs., 12 oz. and was 22 inches long. Welcome to the world, Noah!
The following can all be found on the "Willis Web" blogsite:
"LEST WE FORGET" - a tale of love and loss.
Jim's 1996 CHRISTMAS LETTER - detailing the fantastic year the family had in 1996 and featuring Corrigan's unbelievable success at the Babe Ruth World Series in North Carolina.
Jim's and Claudia's 1993 EUROPEAN VACATION to France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Belgium.
LONDON is one of the world's greatest cities. Relive Claudia's and Jim's 1997 trip!
ALASKA is one of the world's most picturesque locations. Relive Claudia's and Jim's 2004 trip!
SPAIN is a phenomenal country. Relive Claudia's and Jim's 2008 trip!
Photoshows (pictures only) of our 2004 trip to Maine and our 2005 trip to the Southwest.
Photoshow of Dee and Corrigan (prepared for their wedding)
Photoshow with pictures of our River Meadows home.
Jim's brother, Robert, has written three books you might enjoy. His book, The Democracy of God: An American Catholicism, is an important work that should be read by every Catholic and especially by every Catholic bishop.
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© 2009
jimwillisca@comcast.net
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