::: COMMUNITY NEWS

Jay and Clara Massman were married in 1943 and raised seven children.

Longtime Murietan Jay Massman dies at 88

Published Sunday, February 4, 2007

Jay Massman, a longtime member of the Rancho Murieta community, died Jan. 31 at the age of 88.

A visitation will be held Tuesday from 3 to 7 p.m. at Nicoletti, Culjis & Herberger Funeral Home, 5401 Folsom Blvd., in Sacramento. A recitation of the rosary will follow the visitation. A funeral mass will take place Wednesday at 11 a.m. at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church on Cantova Way.

Jay and Clara Massman were among the pioneer residents of Rancho Murieta. "It wasn't here for very long when they moved here," recalled their daughter, Patty St. Pierre.

She said her parents' move from Sacramento was prompted by "the golfing, the beautiful community, just everything. … He loved looking at the deer. My dad loved those deer. All of us do. It's a beautiful place to live."

"He was truly an optimist," she said of her father. "He was born Christian Science, converted to Catholicism for my mom when they married. He was wonderful. He was our hero."

Mr. Massman married Clara Louise Seidenschmidt on June 19, 1943, and they raised seven children together.
"The relationship between him and my mom was just amazing," said their daughter. "It was wonderful. They were great examples for all of us kids … (and) perfect parents."

Mr. Massman managed health problems that included prostate cancer and heart disease until the last six months, when he became progressively weaker. "It was getting harder for him," said his daughter.

Mr. Massman succumbed to pneumonia while being treated at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. "It was very unexpected, very quick. … You still miss him like crazy even if you know he's in a better place," said St. Pierre.

Mr. Massman was preceded in death by his son, Peter, who died in 1990. Peter Massman lived in Rancho Murieta and "was a big part of the community," his sister recalled. Some of the children accompanied their parents on a trip to Hawaii in his memory. "Peter had always wanted to go to Hawaii," said St. Pierre.

Aside from that trip and occasional trips together when Mr. Massman traveled as a heating and air-conditioning systems salesman for Lennox Industries, the couple stayed close to home, devoting themselves to a family that now includes 27 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and enjoying their many friends here.

Mr. Massman was born Oct. 12, 1918, in El Paso, Tex. He served in World War II and was a past member of the Knights of Columbus and the Demolays. He became a devoted Catholic when he converted to the faith upon his marriage.

In addition to his wife of 64 years, Mr. Massman is survived by sons Jay, Richard, Tom and Mike, daughters Patty St. Pierre and Mary Geach, a sister, Betty Berleen of Mission Viejo, and a half-sister, Mary Faries of Texas.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to a favorite charity.