Rae W. was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 26, 1936. She comes from a large Italian family that enjoys being together. Rae has one sister, Virginia, and one brother, Frank. They grew up in Long Island, New York, and on Sundays, they would all get together at her grandmother’s home in Harlem, New York. Her mother was the best cook and housekeeper, and Rae remembers a lot of laughter in their home. Her stepfather was a milkman and served as an air raid warden during World War II. He and other men would don helmets and go throughout the neighborhood, making sure people turned their lights out.
Brooklyn to Los Angeles
As the years passed, Rae’s grandparents moved to southern California, as her grandmother needed to live in a warmer climate. The rest of her family followed soon after, and Rae and her siblings grew up in Los Angeles, California. Rae enjoyed dancing and began taking lessons in ballet and tap dancing. She attended Manual Arts High School as a cheerleader and part of the Sorrels Sorority. Rae loved being a cheerleader, and after her stepfather bought her a car, she began taking the other girls to school.
The Love of Her Life
After graduating high school, Rae worked part-time as a secretary for the Teamsters Union. When she came home each night, she regularly found her neighbor, Faye, talking in the kitchen with her mother. He was a country boy from Montana, and she often saw him out riding his horse bareback outside. With each visit, Rae and Faye became closer and closer. They dated for a few months and paid a visit to the Justice of the Peace to be married.
Rae and Faye worked in concessions at the Los Angeles Coliseum, where they waited on various celebrities. Rae always tried to work to help as much as she could. Faye
worked as a bricklayer and was skilled in making walls, fireplaces, and more. He even received a Golden Trowel for best project by one man in masonry. Rae shared that Faye was a hard worker and did beautiful work.
Always Together And Always There
After getting married, they moved to Garden Grove, California and started their family. Faye and Rae had three children: Linda, Faye Jr., and Jennie. Rae loved being a mother; she and Faye were always there for their children and friends. Faye and Rae would never miss any performances or games. Driving or flying to games even when her kids were in college in other states. At one point, Rae took about half of her son’s football team to practice helping the parents who could not. But this was not something they did for only their kids; they also were always present in the lives of their grandchildren.
Rae and Faye had a great life together. It was seldom they did anything apart. They also did a lot with their friends. Every Thursday, their group would get together at someone’s house to play cards, where they enjoyed one another’s company and laughed late into the night before getting up early to go to work. Rae and Faye were not
homebodies; they took many short trips to Lake Tahoe or Las Vegas, Nevada. They also enjoyed riding motorcycles, and Rae even had her own bike.
The family also enjoyed going out on their boat, which Rae drove while everyone else waterskied. On one of their motorhome trips, Faye pulled over every time they encountered a Dairy Queen because he knew the location of each one. They also enjoyed going out for breakfast, and it’s entirely possible that they visited every breakfast spot in southern California.
65 Years of Love
Rae loved how warm and loveable her husband was and the wonderful dad he was to their kids. She enjoyed the 65 years she spent married to him. During his last few years, they spent much time at Palma Casino. They would play $5 here or there—and then win.
Rae has nine grandchildren; with a recent addition, she now has ten great-grandchildren. Most of her grandchildren are girls, but she does have one grandson. As her kids have grown and built their own families, she has crocheted a special blanket for her grandchildren. Rae also enjoyed painting by number and hung many paintings all over the
house. She also played piano and danced. Rae was an avid animal lover and had many dogs and cats.
Rae has lived at Renaissance Village Murrieta for almost 2.5 years and loves her home. She appreciates the program’s activities and always tries to join in. Rae likes the people and enjoys all the opportunities the community has for residents to stay involved. As a movie buff, she thoroughly enjoys the movies offered each evening.
