Viola King died on September 25 of congestive heart failure in her home in Riberas del Pilar at the age of 95.
King began her education in a one-room school in Oregon and went on to graduate from high school during the great depression. With no funds, she had to forfeit a partial scholarship to a local college. After four years of office work, she had saved enough to attend a Mennonite college in Indiana, where she graduated in 1943 with a degree in education and in 1965 earned a master’s degree from a college in Ohio.
She met her husband, Hugh King, in college and they were married in 1944. She followed him into civilian public service where they both served in mental health hospitals during World War II. Following the war, they moved to Oregon where they purchased a farm. A daughter, Janice, and a son, Gail, soon joined their family.
In 1954, the family moved back to her husband’s family farm in Ohio. With their children in school, King then pursued a teaching career and later became a guidance counselor. In 1965, after selling their farm, they moved to Indiana where she served as the Dean of Women in a Mennonite college. Upon retirement in 1973, they moved to a Mennonite retirement community in Hesston, Kansas.
King moved from Kansas to Lakeside in 2011 with her daughter, Janice Kauffman.
They happily settled in and gained a large circle of friends. During the past year she became involved in programs that assist Mexican children and was also helping to sponsor a young Mexican man who wanted to pursue his high school education.
King is preceded in death by her son, who died in 1994, her husband, who died in 2004 and her grandson, who died in 2009. She is survived by her daughter, Janice, who remains in Lakeside, and two granddaughters who live in Seattle, Washington.
Contributions in her memory can be made to the Love in Action children’s shelter via their website: www.loveinactioncenter.org.