Retired Santa Rosa teacher Lauree Villarreal dies at 65

Retired Santa Rosa teacher and counselor Lauree Villarreal, 65, who died of complications from Lou Gehrig’s disease late last year, is being remembered by those who knew her for her dedication to her students, her humor, ability to listen and her passion for Hawaiian culture.

Villarreal’s career in education spanned about 20 years and included three Santa Rosa schools, Rincon Valley and Cook middle schools and Montgomery High. She retired in 2007 due to health issues.

“For all of us who were lucky enough to know her, we really valued her professionalism, her trust and her courage and all of the good times,” said Linda Archer, who worked with Villarreal at Rincon Valley and Montgomery.

Villarreal died Dec. 16. She was at home in Santa Rosa until her last few days, being cared for by her husband, Gerald Villarreal. He said family and friends were with her when she died at a Santa Rosa hospital.

Born Lauree Root, she was raised in the Sacramento area. She graduated from the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, where she earned her teaching degree.

While attending college, she tried to fix a friend up with a UC Berkeley student she’d known in high school. Instead, she fell for his roommate, Gerald Villarreal.

They dated for two years and married in July 1972, remaining in the East Bay where she began teaching at an Oakland school.

In 1975, the couple moved to Santa Rosa, where he took a job as a Sonoma County deputy public defender and she began teaching English and crafts at Rincon Valley Junior High School. She worked at the school for about five years, then took a break with their young children and also earned her master’s in counseling.

Returning to work, Lauree Villarreal worked as a counselor at Cook for about seven years before transferring to Montgomery, where she finished her career in 2007.

One of the benefits of working at Rincon Valley was a fast-bonding group of new teachers who maintained a close friendship throughout their careers and into retirement.

Several recalled Villarreal as a private person with a witty sense of humor and a kind heart, who thoroughly enjoyed the many gatherings of teacher friends, which typically involved wine and endless laughter.

“She was the captain of the ship. She loved us all,” said Ola King-Claye, a world history teacher at Rincon Valley.

“She was just so kind and giving,” said Dara Hill, a retired math teacher at the school. “She still was reaching out to other people. Even this year, she called people on their birthday.”

On the job, she was highly respected by colleagues and known for her devotion to her students, her colleagues said.

“She worked tirelessly to help improve students’ lives,” Archer said. “She always maintained the highest level of trust and respect from everybody. She was just a safe haven.”

Villarreal loved reading, watching the San Francisco Giants and enjoyed traveling, including annual trips to Mexico to see her husband’s family. But after one trip to Hawaii, Lauree Villarreal embraced a passion for the islands, the culture and music.

“In another life, she would have been Hawaiian,” her husband said.

She also was known for her ability to cook. Her husband called her a great cook.

“She had a wide repertoire of food,” he said. Perhaps her toughest lessons in cooking came when she tackled Villarreal family recipes - which weren’t written down, but had to be learned by fastidiously watching her mother-in-law, who measured nothing.

Earlier in her life, Villarreal successfully fought uterine cancer but later began having symptoms doctors found difficult to diagnose. Eventually, she learned she had amyotropic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS.

“She was awfully courageous about it. She was frustrated, but she didn’t complain,” Gerald Villarreal said.

In addition to her husband, she is survived by her son, Roberto Villarreal of Santa Rosa; daughters Gabriela Villarreal of San Francisco and Mariama Gumbs of Danville; three grandsons; and mother Joyce Root of Santa Rosa.

A celebration of her life will be held later this year during warmer weather. She requested her ashes be scattered off the island of Kona, where she’d once experienced a spiritually moving swim with a pod of pilot whales, her husband said.

Memorial donations may be made to any education organization, including Schools Plus or the Elsie Allen High School Foundation.