Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, August 26, 2023

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Mountain View News Saturday, August 26, 2023 

REMEMBRANCE:

WALKING SIERRA MADRE - The Social Side

by Deanne Davis

JEAN SYLVIA (OSTI) HAND 


Jean Sylvia (Osti) Hand was born 
on February 7th, 1941 to Leonardo 
and Teresa Osti of Sierra 
Madre, California. Jean was born 
at home, as the tenth of eleven 
children: Leonora, Marino, Florence, 
Robert, John, Louise, Fred, 
David, Louie, Jean and Danny. 
Jean grew up in Sierra Madre 
surrounded by her loving family, 
and earned her A.A. in Business 
at Pasadena City College, which 
led her to employment at several 
banks and savings and loans. 

Jean married Russell Hand 
on May 25th, 1963 at Bethany 
Church in Sierra Madre. After 
marrying, the newlyweds moved 
to Newport Beach, California 
and were involved with the college 
aged youth at their church 
throughout the late 60s and early 
70s, creating lifelong relationships 
that exist to this day. 

Jean and Russell moved to Cottage Grove, Oregon in 1973, where Jeannie thrived on her enjoyment 
of growing vegetables and flowers, and tending a small herd of sheep on their 2 ½ acres of land. 
During this time she also established herself as a skilled preserver, cake decorator and expressed 
her creativity in beautiful flower arrangements. 

Jean and Russell welcomed their long anticipated daughter, Amy Elizabeth, into their lives in 1976. 
The family moved to Eugene in 1988, where she began working as the secretary of Washington 
Elementary school, until her retirement in 2000.

Jeannie and Russell shared many great times together, bound and supported by their love and devotion 
to our Lord Jesus Christ. They enjoyed gardening, fishing, hiking, visiting many National 
Parks and making memories with family and friends, near and far. During their first trip to Europe 
in 1969, Jeannie was able to establish close relationships with her family in Italy and France, relationships 
that she cherished and maintained for the rest of her life. 

Jean’s faith in Christ continued to blossom through their move to Oregon and strengthened within 
her involvement with Faith Center, in both Cottage Grove and Eugene, where she led women’s bible 
studies, and in her service as a Good News Club Teacher through Child Evangelism. As a joyful 
member of the University Fellowship Church, her involvement brought rich friendships into her 
life in her later years, with small group bible studies and community service. Jeannie also enjoyed 
serving with the Sacred Heart Hospital Guild and maintaining and establishing new friendships in 
her knitting group. 

Jean went home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on August 9th, 2023. Jean is survived 
by her beloved husband, Russell Clarkson Hand, daughter Amy Elizabeth Hand, grandson Anahkin 
Blue Hand, and brothers David Cesare Osti and Daniel George Osti, as well as many many 
treasured nieces, nephews and cousins. 

Jean had a servant's heart and will be remembered for her beautiful smile, kind, generous and loving 
spirit, and her devotion to God, her family and her many treasured friends. 

Jeannie felt God’s blessings throughout her life, and in turn blessed the lives of countless others.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday September 16th, 2023 at University Fellowship 
Church, 1855 Cal Young Rd in Eugene Oregon, at 11 am. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Eugene Mission

“The best thing one can do when it’s raining 
is to let it rain!” Henry Wadsworth 
Longfellow

“The nicest thing about the rain is that it 
always stops. Eventually.” Eeyore

“Rainy days should be spent at home with 
a cup of tea and a good book.”

Bill Watterson

“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, 
you gotta put up with the rain.”

Dolly Parton

The picture this week, courtesy of friend 
and meteorologist, Dr. Charles Seitz, is 
of the rain gauge in his backyard, showing 
that Tropical Storm Hilary left more 
than five inches of rain!

My friend, Bob Gollihugh, who lives in 
Monrovia, says Hilary gifted him with 
over six inches of rain.

Yes, friends and neighbors, we’re going 
to talk about rain this week. We actually 
had some! That was the most exciting 
part. 

Most everyone I know emerged unscathed 
but friends in Palm Springs 
didn’t do so well. Friend, Denise, sent 
me a video of her sister’s teen-age son 
sweeping vast quantities of rain off their 
roof as more torrential rain swept down 
on it. Her brother lost his power for a bit 
but it’s restored now. We were all geared 
up for way more hurricane-like wind 
and rain than we actually got. Which is 
good. There are some trees with broken 
branches and a couple that were totally uprooted but it could have been worse. In 
fact, it has been worse. The huge storm in the, I think it was the late 90’s, left us 
without power for days and so many trees uprooted. 

OK, I’m going to confess: I’ve started putting out all my decorations for Fall. Yes, 
there are pumpkins of all sorts scattered ‘round my house. Not all of them, but a lot. 

Normal people wouldn’t start on this until at least September, but I can’t wait any 
longer. There’s Pumpkin Spice Creamer and Pumpkin Spice coffee at the grocery 
store and I’m so ready for Fall. I’m going to give you a little Fall story to start getting 
you in the mood, too…

A Halloween Horror Story

Halloween is almost upon us (well, not really, but it will arrive eventually) and those 
pumpkins that decorate porches and walls with their happy faces, grotesque faces, 
scary faces are not always what they seem.

Come with me to the Pumpkin Patch, an acre dotted with corn stalks, scarecrows 
and pumpkins. More pumpkins than you were expecting. Enormous pumpkins, flat 
ones, round ones, tall skinny ones; some misshapen, some with strange lumps and 
bumps, some with scars and some so little they are passed over again and again. 

“Not that one Daddy! It’s too small. I want a really big one! I want that one…or that 
one…not that one, that one’s ugly!” for a pumpkin, whose entire life has been dedicated 
to growing into a carve-worthy orange globe, this is hurtful, degrading and 
can bring a pumpkin to thoughts of revenge.

The packet of Atlantic Giant Pumpkin Seeds from Burpee arrived at the Pumpkin 
Patch in a somewhat damaged condition. There were heavy, dark tire tracks over the 
face of it and minute holes where it had been ground into the ground. It had been 
rained on, left out in the sun and, in short, was not a beautiful thing. The owner of 
the Pumpkin Patch, however, having paid $2.99 for it wasn’t about to toss it out. 

Upon further inspection of the actual seeds, he discovered some were cracked, tiny 
pieces missing. “What the heck,” he thought, “I might as well go ahead and

plant them, they’ll probably grow…maybe.”

And plant them, he did. But in a far corner of the Patch, not out in the rows where 
he put the rest of his seeds. It was late May and an unexpected rain thoroughly 
drenched the Pumpkin Patch.

“This is great,” the farmer thought, “water these seeds in and give them a good start. 
These babies will be enormous by September.” The rains came, the owner fertilized 
and the pumpkin seeds sprouted and put out miles of bright green runners. Blossoms 
formed and turned into small orange balls.

Everywhere except there in the corner of the Pumpkin Patch where the broken, 
cracked seeds had been planted. There the vines were thicker, stronger and stretched 
out in every direction, seething with dark green life. Quite frankly, that corner area 
made the owner just a little uneasy.

There seemed something unpleasantly unusual about those vines. The word, “sinister” 
came to mind. Ridiculous! He thought. They’re pumpkins. That’s all, just plain 
old pumpkins. But were they? 

To Be Continued… 

Think Fall, my friends! Think Pumpkins! Think cooler weather! 

Think Pumpkin Spice Lattes. 

My book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis

There are treasures there! Trust me! 

Including “Just Desserts” A Fall Fantasy Of Pumpkins Gone Wrong!


In honor of the 103rd anniversary of women earning the 
right to vote, Sierra Madre Playhouse presents 

THE CAMERA IS OURS SILENT FILM FESTIVAL!

As a complement to the presentation of the World Premiere live stage musical The Right Is Ours! (September 
8 - October 8, 2023) about women winning the right to vote, Sierra Madre Playhouse will present The 
Camera Is Ours, a two-day silent film festival of 5 events from August 26-27 featuring films before and after 
the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment -- coinciding also with the 103rd anniversary of the passage 
of the right for women to vote (August 26, 1920). It's a weekend of silent film fun at Sierra Madre Playhouse, 
which began life as a silent film venue on February 2, 1924!

All five events will be introduced by silent film expert Lara Gabrielle and feature live piano accompaniment 
by concert pianist Frederick Hodges, who will also be underscoring all of the silent films presented 
throughout the festival.

Purchase individual tickets to any of the silent film festival events separately, or save when purchasing 
tickets to 3 of or all 5 of the events at once (with the The Camera Is Ours 3-Events and 5-Events Passes)!


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com