Obituaries

Seba Cecile Pfingston passed away at the age of 90 on March 13, 2024, in Eureka, Humboldt County, California. Born Sept. 15, 1933, in Denver, Colorado, she was the daughter of the late Cecil and Seba Will-Nana Brooks.

Seba graduated from East High School and attended Denver University (DU) for two years. While attending DU, Seba met two lifelong friends, Marie Schmidt and Helen Vexler, and together they spent a term studying in Mexico City, Mexico. Their friendship continued after marriages (to Warren Schmidt and the late Perry Vexler, respectively), and the three couples shared many good times together over the decades.


At age 21, Seba joined the Foreign Service of the United States Department of State and completed a two-year tour of duty, beginning in Damascus, Syria, and transferring to Istanbul, Turkey, during the Suez Crisis.

Seba married John Elliott Pfingston on AUG. 24, 1957, and they raised three daughters, Cecile Seba, Yvonne Marie, and Amy Annette, in Jefferson County, Colorado, and Sunnyvale, California. Both Seba and John graduated from the College of Notre Dame, Belmont, California, in 1971. Their three daughters were in the audience.

Among Seba’s varied jobs were as an outreach aid for social services in the San Francisco Bay Area, California; a high school career center assistant in Mountain View, California; a Master Gardener and florist in Sunnyvale, California; a docent for the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona; and a tour guide in Arizona and throughout the Southwest. Seba and John were married 50 years. John passed away in 2008. Seba‘s younger brother, Lee Richard Brooks, passed away in 2010.

Seba is survived by her daughters, Cecile Seba Pfingston Holmes, and son-in-law Robert Holmes, of Rancho Santa Fe, California; Yvonne Marie Pfingston of Arcata, California; and Amy Pfingston Ito, and son-in-law Shaw Ito, of Lakewood, Colorado. She is also survived by her granddaughters, Anna Seba Losee, and husband Richard Losee, of Winchester, California; and Mari Joy Pfingston-Bigelow of Tijeras, New Mexico. Seba’s great-granddaughters, Rebecca Mary Losee and Riley Joy Losee, live with their parents in Winchester, California. Seba is also
survived by Eric Brooks and Corinne Claypool, her brother’s children, and David Ehrett and Christi Hart, her sister-in-law’s children.

The family wants to thank Laura Hall, FNP, for her excellent medical care over the years; Linda Willcut-Tallman, RN, CCM, of SAFE Planners, for her valuable advocacy services; and all the caring individuals at Elite Caregivers, at Timber Ridge McKinleyville, and at Seaview Rehabilitation and

Wellness, for their compassionate care and support in the last stages of Mom’s life.

Seba enjoyed live music and she would be pleased to be thought of when you’re dancing, foot tapping, or supporting musicians of any kind. Seba will be greatly missed by family, friends, and neighbors. Please join us wherever you are with a glass of champagne, wine, or your preferred beverage, to toast Seba and a life well-lived.