Lois Ann Busick Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Ann passed away peacefully on Thursday, January 18, 2018 at Serenity House. Ann's positive attitude and strong spirit carried her through many hard times in her life, including her final fight with cancer. Through the death of her oldest son, the years of care that she provided to her husband Curt during his battle with Alzheimer's, and through her 2 separate bouts with cancer, Ann met these challenges head on and refused to give up. When she would arrive for her chemo treatments at Sansum Clinic she would announce, "I'm here for my martini!" Her motto was "once around the park and no dress rehearsals." She was actually excited about losing her hair during chemo so that she could wear her brightly colored hats. She relished this because it gave her new opportunities to meet and talk to people. Born in Santa Barbara in 1935 to Ralph and Jean Hill, Ann spent a part of her early childhood as a navy brat, traveling around the country with her mother and brother to be closer to her father who had reenlisted in the navy during WWII. Once back in Santa Barbara, they lived on the Westside and Ann attended Harding Elementary, La Cumbre Jr. High and Santa Barbara High, graduating in 1954. She attended UCSB for a brief time but met and fell in love with Curt Busick, a Seabee from Paoli, IN, at one of the dances at Oak Park. They were wed in 1955 and she loved to tell the story of how they spent their honeymoon squirrel hunting in Indiana. While Curt was stationed in Texas they lived for a short time in Beeville until Curt was discharged from the Navy. Once back in Santa Barbara, they started a family and purchased their new home in Goleta for $17,000 in 1960. Ann's first job while in high school was working at the local movie theatres in town, and she would recount stories of many a movie star that would come to Santa Barbara for the premier of their movies. She once asked Gregory Peck for his autograph, then asked him to sign several pieces of paper. When he asked her what she was going to do with them, she replied that she was going to sell them for a nickel. He just smiled and kept signing autographs for her. Years later she was cast as an extra in the movie "Steal Big, Steal Little" and was able to be a part of her own movie premier in 1995 with family and friends attending. Ann started at La Patera School, when it first opened in 1963, as a room mother and a member of the PTA, then later as a yard duty, teacher's aide and crossing guard. She loved working with the kids and had always said that they were what kept her going during the tough times. Possibly because of this, generations of La Patera Tigers affectionately called her Grandma, Abuelita and the infamous "Peanut Butter Lady." A life-long Dodger fan ever since the Brooklyn days, Ann would spend many a spare moment in her youth idolizing the local Dodger farm club. One of her favorite Dodgers of all time was left handed pitcher Sandy Koufax. Just two days before her passing she finally got to meet someone -- who knew someone -- who knew Sandy Koufax. She was so excited that she spent the next couple of hours chuckling to herself and saying, "you see, you've got to talk to people because you never know who you're going to meet." Ann was preceded in death by her son Tom in 1981, her husband Curt in 2007 and her beloved dog Little Fart last September. She is survived by her son Ralph Busick (Tami), daughter Jean Hall (Matt), brother Tom Hill (Doris), 4 granddogs and 2 grandcats. Special thanks to Dr. Glenn Hollingshead, Dr. Mukul Gupta and Hangama Abassi NP, of Sansum Clinic, whose compassion and care through the years has been immeasurable. Also to the nursing staff at Serenity House whose dedication and support helped Mom through her final weeks. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Serenity House or to the Santa Barbara Humane Society. But the best way to honor Ann is to simply start a conversation with someone you don't know. You might just meet someone--who knows someone--who knows Sandy Koufax. You never know. A memorial service will be held at the Free Methodist Church on Cliff Drive, Saturday, March 3 at 11:00 am.

Lois Ann Busick

December 18, 1918 - January 18, 2018