Etalea Laura Darnell
April 19, 1940 - October 2, 2026
OBITUARY
Etalea Laura Pickle was born in Grants Pass Oregon to parents John and Winnie Pickle. She was the 4 th born of 8 children. Her Siblings were Orlen, Arlene, Howard, Byron, Patty, Martin, and Tom. Patty is now the only surviving sibling to date.
All ten of the Pickles lived in a two-bedroom, one loft home on ten acres with an outhouse in Selma Oregon. The tight quarters fostered strong bonds amongst family. The Pickle family would take annual camping trips to scout and hunt to bring home deer meat for the coming winter. Deer was their primary source of meat along with the fish they caught themselves. Lots of homemade jarred preserves such as Boysen berries, blue berries, peaches and apples. They depended on these necessities to feed their large family over the winter.
Etalea always loved going to the nearby creek with her siblings and friends to swim and splash around. The Pickles owned a horse named Minnie Pearl. Etalea’s siblings would often ride her to town to shop, visit Aunts and Uncles, grandparents and cousins that lived just down from the Pickles. Family that lived just down a ways were Ruben and Barbara Tucker, her grandparents, Uncle Chief and Aunt Evelyn, and Uncle Sleepy and Aunt Ardith.
Everyone went to church every Sunday with their bibles in hand. This was a must! The family also attended the annual Josephine County Fair in Grants Pass. Etalea took home ribbons for cooking, baking, and livestock. She kept her ribbons in a vase her sister painted. Etalea’s brothers and father, John worked in Oregon’s’ timber industry as loggers. At this time there was a lot of timber in Oregon, and jobs were open to anyone who wanted to work hard. Etaleas’ father and brothers were hard working timbermen.
Etalea and her siblings attended Illinois Valley Highschool in Cave Junction, Oregon. They rode the school bus every day to get to school. Etalea graduated high school in 1958 with the 38 other students in her senior class. On the last day of school, Etalea got off the school bus in front of Mildred’s café. She worked there as cook for a couple of years. Her mother Winnie, and sister Patty went on to work there as well. They peeled potatoes and cooked many meals for hungry customers. Etalea soon earned enough money to buy a 1957 yellow Chevy. Now she had wheels! She even drove herself and her boss Mildred to Reno one night. Etalea never forgot it. She passed on this “girls’ trip” story to her family many times. She and Mildred must have had a blast!
Etalea met and then married James Edwin Darnell at 20 years of age on April 9 th , 1961. This was a double wedding with her sister Patty and her husband Garrett. She went from Etalea Pickle to Etalea Darnell. The newlyweds first moved to Crescent City California. They later moved to Sacramento California so that James could pursue a career with the State of California Dept of Transportation. James would work with Caltrans until his retirement.
Along the way James and Etalea had 3 sons. David Henry was born December 25, 1961, Robert Harold was born November 4, 1964, and Kenneth Edwin was born November 10, 1965. Etalea was a wife, mother, and homemaker, raised her sons and cared for the household. She was the heart of the home. She prepared homemade meals and desserts every night for her family. Everyone had their favorites. She enjoyed thrifting at the local thrift shops and embraced being a “little league mom”. She drove the neighborhood Barbee way boys to team baseball games for many years. She was one of the Barbee way moms. There were many boys that grew up on their block. She supported her sons with the teams they played for.
James and Etalea installed a swimming pool one year when living on Barbee way. They let David, Robert, and Kenneth invite all their friends over for swims. Etalea would host barbeques in their backyard, and she was an avid gardener. Etalea enjoyed sewing curtains, clothing, and quilts. She also enjoyed knitting and crocheting. There was nothing she couldn’t fix with her many sets of tools. There isn’t a tool that exists that she didn’t have in her tool kits and carts.
Throughout the years, James and Etalea always hosted Thanksgiving. Their home smelled of baked and deep-fried turkey. Etalea always prepared a wonderful homemade meal, along with her specialty homemade buttery biscuits, and had plenty of wine on hand. James and Etalea enjoyed buying wine and going wine tasting at local wineries. They also enjoyed listening to country music CD’s when they went on long drives together, which they did often. They also enjoyed drives and stays in Monterey in which they rode bicycles on 17-mile drive. Etalea owned 3 Toyota Rav4’s in her lifetime. 1 silver and 2 red ones. She loved her Toyotas!
Etalea and James also enjoyed visiting casinos. It was a fun day to spend the afternoon after a long drive together. Etalea’s favorite shopping experience was with LL bean. This is where she stocked up on all her jeans and flannel shirts for the year. She always had a love for butterflies and anything Americana, red, white and blue. She was an American patriot and a lifetime Democrat at heart.
As their sons got older and began high school, Etalea began taking business classes at Cosumnes River College and Sacramento City College. Shortly after, she became an employee for the County of Sacramento as a secretary for the County Planning Dept. Within time, she became the Executive Secretary in her dept. and was working with a team of people. This was the 1980’s, where everyone was learning how to navigate new computers and technology. Her boss, Tom Hutchings, relied heavily on Etalea to teach the other co- workers on how to use these new machines. Etalea was Tom Hutchings right hand Lady. In fact, when Etalea retired, Tom decided he wasn’t going to continue working without her and decided to retire himself as well.
As the years passed and James was working for CALTRANS and Etalea was working for the County, their three sons David, Robert, and Kenneth began getting married and having families of their own. James and Etalea’s families were growing. David gave James and Etalea 5 grandchildren….Dustin, Denise, Jaimee, JoJo, and Christpher. Robert gave them 2 grandchildren…Nicholas and Grant. Kenneth gave them 2 grandchildren… Jonathan and Julia. David’s son Dustin gave them 2 great-grandchildren, Cody and Cayden. James and Etalea now had a happy brood of 9 grandchildren, 2 great-grandchildren, 3 sons, and 3 daughters-in-law, Becki, Marla, and Kathleen.
Etalea relished being a grandmother, just as she did a mother. She took her grandchildren to zoo’s, park’s, picnics, and stocked her home with engaging toys for the grand kids to learn from. James and Etalea even had Santa Claus himself, make appearances from his busy schedule to visit their grandchildren and pass out toys. Etalea was an active grandmother. She loved every birthday party. Etalea was the “ideal” grandmother.
After some time, James retired from Caltrans and began having health issues. Etalea retired shortly after. Etalea cared for all of James’ medical issues and needs for the next few years. She drove him to his Dialysis appointments three days a week, made sure he stayed on his diet, and made sure he obeyed all doctor’s orders. Sadly, James passed away on December 26, 2012.
Etalea continued living on her own in Valley Springs. She busied herself with long daily walks and shopping at nearby stores. Her turtle Sherman kept her company along with frequent visits from her family. Her home was always open for all holidays and birthdays for family to gather. We made sure, Etalea was not alone on Mother’s Day, 4 th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Birthdays. She prepared the best delicious meals, cakes, cobblers, and fudge. During this time Etalea also took her granddaughters, Jaimee and Julia to Yosemite National Park. The trip remains a fond memory, especially to Julia who loved getting to spend with her.
Etalea’s long time wish was to visit Yellowstone National Park. Etalea and her family went twice. Once in 2014 and again in 2016. She relished all the wildlife, forestry, lakes and hikes. Etalea’s family took her on trips to Northern California and Oregon to visit family. She got to visit where she was raised, and she shared all of her memories about her and her family growing up in Selma Oregon. She even took her turtle Sherman along for the journey.
Around 2021, Etalea began showing signs of dementia. Her sons moved her to Folsom California, to be closer to family. The family rallied and made sure that someone, everyday would help her with shopping, cleaning, and paying her bills. David, Robert, and Kenneth scheduled days to take her out to lunch, drives, thrift store shopping and gambling on the slot machines at Redhawk Casino. She enjoyed working with jigsaw puzzles and looking through her many photo albums that were filled with family faces. A family member was with her and cared for her every single day. We were dedicated.
In February of 2026 however, the Darnell family had come to realize that Etalea needed more care than they could provide. They needed additional help. So the family moved Etalea into Oakmont Senior Assisted/Memory-Care Facility in Folsom California. She had her own deluxe room with a bathroom all to herself. Again, her sons David, Robert and Kenneth, would schedule days and take turns, where one of them visited her each day of the week. They would take her out to lunch and shopping. The Oakmont staff knew David, Robert and Kenneth by name. They admired their dedication to their mother.
Sadly, on October 2, 2026, at 86 years of age, Etalea passed away. She was released from this earth and rejoined her husband James, mother Winnie, father John, and her 6 siblings that passed before her. She is surrounded by loving faces and open arms. She is at peace.
Etalea was a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She will be deeply missed.
A parent’s love is eternal, and though you are no longer with us, your guidance and care continue to light our way.
You gave us everything, and now we carry your wisdom and love in our hearts and forever grateful for the life you shared with us.
A touching and impactful quote reads…
“Do not hold on to me with tears, for I am not gone-I am only changed. I am the wind that brushes your cheek, the warmth that lights your path”.
FUNERAL SERVICE
A service will be held on Thursday, October 22, 2026 at 10:00am at the Evergreen Chapel at Cherokee Memorial Park, located off of Highway 99 at Harney Lane, Lodi CA, 95240.
Cherokee Memorial is honored to serve the Darnell family.
Please leave your condolences below.
