Alice “Jean” Eppley, 91, passed away in Grass Valley, CA on July 21, 2025, with her son and daughter by her side.

Jean was born in Anacortes, WA on November 2, 1933 to Ingvald andPhyllis Saimons. She grew up in the Cascade Mountains of Washington, living in Marblemount, and Concrete, and on the family homestead in the wilderness now adjoining Cascade National Park. Jean graduated from Concrete High School in 1952, and joined her older brother, Winston, at Washington State University, where she met Richard Eppley, a saxophone player studying biology, and working toward a career in science. Jean paused her education to marry Richard and follow him to California, where he began graduate study at Stanford University, while Jean worked at a new magazine called “Sunset” which sparked her love of interior design.

After a year in Palo Alto, the family, now including daughter Zoe, moved to Pacific Grove, where Richard continued his studies at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station, while Jean worked for the California State Influenza Commission at Fort Ord. Four years later, newly minted Ph.D. Richard accepted a teaching position at the University of Southern California. The family moved to Los Angeles, where son Dean was born. To support their growing family, Richard left USC for the aerospace industry, where he worked on how to grow food in space. The pay raise enabled them to buy their first home, in a new housing tract in Westminster, CA. Jean made it an inviting and beautifully landscaped haven. A few years later, Richard joined the Food Chain Research Group at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and they moved to San Diego. Jean and Richard found a beautiful contemporary house with a 270° view from mountains to ocean, but in great need of TLC. This home, featuring Jean’s art collection, was the site of many gatherings, with Richard and his colleagues providing musical entertainment. Jean was ever the welcoming, gregarious hostess.

The family enjoyed a sabbatical year in Maryland, where Richard worked with the Atomic Energy Commission. Jean, ever the art lover, used the year to visit art museums in Washington, DC and throughout the East Coast. Upon returning to San Diego, Jean resumed her education at San Diego State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in art.

Jean worked in several interior design studios. Then, with her new Apple Computer, she started Eppley Associates. She enjoyed applying her design skills for clients, and also improving her own home. Her kitchen remodel was featured in San Diego Home and Garden Magazine.

The family enjoyed several summers on San Juan Island, WA and in Sydney, BC, where Jean became especially fond of Northwest First Nation Art, decorating their home with colorful prints of stylized animals. On a family visit to Marblemount, Jean discovered her family’s old homestead cabin and five remaining acres of land were for sale. They bought the cabin and got to work fixing it up. Upon retirement, they would spend entire summers at the cabin, hiking in the Cascades, enjoying nature and visiting family and friends.

Jean and Richard were married for seventy years and never grew tired of each other. They were truly in love. Even with declining memories, they would still hold hands while dining at their memory care facility. Jean was preceded in death by Richard in October 2023. No service is planned.