Ethel M. Pont
Beloved wife of the late Manard Pont, M.D., loving mother, devoted grandmother, and gracious friend, Ethel succumbed on January 14, 2018 after battling Alzheimer's disease for more than 12 years.
A native Californian, Ethel was born in San Francisco soon after Independence Day, 1932, and raised in Fresno. Upon graduation from the University of Southern California, she served the Central Valley for several years as a social worker. After a long courtship, she married Mick in 1964, and they started a family, settling in Castro Valley, where she remained until 2007. Ethel was a member of the community at Sunrise Senior Living in Oakland and a long-time congregant of Temple Beth Sholom in San Leandro.
At home, she pursued word puzzles, needlepoint, and cooking, working in particular to perfect her mandelbrodt, pumpkin soup, and minestrone. Each batch came out better and with more love than the one before. Outside the home, she volunteered at her children's schools and traveled, visiting the Middle East, Alaska, the Hawaiian Islands, and Europe. She supported Jewish Family & Community Services of the East Bay, Jewish Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Los Angeles, KQED, German Shepherd Rescue of Northern California, Guide Dogs for the Blind, and served on the board of the Eden Hospital Foundation. Wherever she went, she took special delight in her three children and two grandchildren.
Preceded in death by her parents, Aaron (1971) and Selma (1986), and by her husband Mick (1992). Ethel is survived by her children Helen Martin (Jeff), Jonathan, and Aaron, and two grandchildren.
Our family remains grateful to the caretakers who walked beside Ethel in her last miles.
Should you wish, please consider donating to an organization mentioned above.