Vera Ratcliffe

Vera Ratcliffe, a 57-year resident of Redondo Beach, passed away on March 27, 2018. She was 91 years old. Vera was born in the small steel-mill town of Midland, Pennsylvania on November 13, 1926 to Serbian immigrants Mina and Nikolas Gnjatovich. She contracted rheumatic fever as a small child and, as a consequence, suffered from the effects of a severely damaged heart all of her life. Nevertheless, she never lost her passion for life or her irreverent sense of humor.

She was widowed at 38, when her childhood sweetheart and husband, Dr. Clarence Ratcliffe, was killed in a car crash while driving home from his optometric practice near Palm Springs. She was left to raise two young girls, Nancy and Jaimie. At the time, she was studying for a degree in education, but had to quit her studies to find work to support her daughters. She took a job with the Redondo Beach School District and ended her career there 28 years later as a secretary at Lincoln School.

Vera was an avid reader with an inquisitive mind and a creative imagination. She adored the sea and looked forward to her strolls along the Esplanade. She also inherited her Mother's green thumb and loved to grow herbs, vegetables, and fruit that she incorporated in her cooking. She was a true master chef who never failed to wow family and friends with her incredible culinary skills.

Vera is survived by her daughters, Jaimie Kau and Nancy Miller; her son-in-law, Clayton Kau; granddaughter Christy Johnson; three great-grandchildren - Vincent, Solomon, Sarah; and three wonderful sisters, Annie, Gloria and Vida. Her beloved partner of 43 years, Floyd Roethe, passed away on the same day in 2009 and she missed him dearly. Her eldest sister Mary Jane Boisvert passed away at the age of 95 in 2016 and her great-granddaughter Rebekah died at age 20 the same year. We will always remember Vera's impish grin, her playfulness, her outrageous sense of humor, and above all, her fighting spirit in the face of adversity.

The family will always be grateful to Dr. James Dougher for the kind and compassionate care he gave Vera during the last ten months of her life.

A memorial service will be held at Green Hills Memorial Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes on Tuesday, April 10 at 11:30 am (a brief viewing for those interested at 11:00 am).