Shirley Ruth (Stratton) Brous, beloved wife, mother and grandmother of Santa Maria, California went to be with our Lord in heaven on September 15, 2020.
Shirley was born in Jasper County, Missouri. Her family lived in Joplin then moved to Lamar, Missouri. While living in Lamar, Shirley met and married her high school sweetheart, Gary Brous in 1952. They made their first home in Missouri. From this union they had four children: Gwendolyn, Sherry, Greg and Grant.
In 1963 Shirley and family moved to Altadena, CA; where she worked for California Institute of Technology for several years. Then they moved to Santa Barbara in 1970. Shirley and Gary started a machine shop business making machined parts for other major companies. Shirley worked in the physics and geography departments at the University of California Santa Barbara for 14 years and retired in 1993.
During Shirley’s retirement she learned to play bridge and was very proud of winning tournaments. Shirley had the passion to travel the world. Some of the places Shirley and Gary visited were Germany, China, England, Italy, Alaska and the Panama Canal. She shared her husband’s interest in horse racing and was able to go to the Kentucky Derby twice. Another interest of Shirley’s was floral design and her home was decorated with the arrangements she had made. Shirley was a member of a gourmet cooking group and had so much fun creating recipes, cooking international foods and dining with her friends. She was a member of the Goleta Woman’s Service Club for many years.
Shirley is survived by her husband, Gary Brous; two daughters, Gwendolyn McCrea, of Palm Springs, CA; Sherry (John) Scherman of Santa Maria, CA; two sons, Gregory Brous of San Ynez, CA; Gary Grant Brous of Las Vegas, Nevada. Her special grandchildren are: Heather McCrea of Texas; Bruce McCrea of Desert Hot Springs, CA; William McCrea of Palm Springs, CA; John Wesley Robb of Santa Maria, CA; Lisa Smith of Nebraska; Timothy Robb of Arizona; Janelle Brous of Santa Barbara, CA; Jason Brous of San Ynez, CA; Lauren Kerr of Buellton CA; Christina and Calvin Brous of Las Vegas, NV. There are also great-grandchildren.
Shirley was preceded in death by: her parents, Herbert and Janie Stratton; four brothers, Vernon Stratton, Merlin Stratton, Wayne Stratton and Ronald Stratton; one sister, Charlotte (Stratton) Achard.
Shirley had a loving heart, a beautiful smile, a wonderful sense of humor, and enjoyed her life as a wife, mother and grandmother. She was a friend to all that knew her. She was a hard-working, passionate figure of strength, who never waned in her support or love of her family and she soldiered on, even when times were tough. She will always be admired and loved by her family.
Burial was September 25, 2020 at Santa Barbara Memorial Cemetery, Santa Barbara, California.
