Jean E. Rusmore
Sept. 13, 1920-April 10, 2022
Aptos, California

Jean Rusmore was born in Anaheim, CA on Sept. 13, 1920 and died peacefully at home on Apr. 1, 2022, in Aptos, CA, after 55 years in Portola Valley (Ladera) and another 12 at the Vi in Palo Alto, knowing that she was well-loved by her large family and friends. Jean will be remembered for her dedication and leadership in San Francisco Bay Area conservation organizations and authorship of hiking guidebooks to the Bay Area: Peninsula Trails, South Bay Trails, and Bay Area Ridge Trail.

A daughter of Oscar and Mary (Grim) Heying, Jean attended public and Catholic schools in Anaheim. She graduated from UC Berkeley in 1942 (Go Bears!) and married Jay T. (Ted) Ruschhaupt on Sept. 9, 1942, when both spouses changed their surnames to Rusmore. A long-time Peninsula resident, Jean co-founded the Ladera Recreation District and the Committee for Green Foothills and was an early advocate of allocating part of gas taxes to bike lanes and paths. A hiking group she started in the 1970’s, the Walkie Talkies, is still active. She participated in home-stay and tutoring programs for international students at Stanford, making many lifelong friends in the process. Jean loved music, especially classical, as well as ballet, theater, and traveling. She had many friends who remember her gracious and welcoming personality and especially her warm smile that made everyone feel loved.

Her husband Ted, psychology professor emeritus of San José State U., died in 2004. She is survived by her brother John Heying, Carlsbad, CA, and her six children and their families: Mary Lyn Rusmore Villaume, Portland, OR; Teri Coppedge, Ashland, OR; Barbara Rusmore, Bozeman, MT; John Rusmore, Elk Grove, CA; Kaki Rusmore, Aptos, CA, and Margi Rusmore, Los Angeles, CA. She will also be missed by her 13 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren, as well as many nieces, nephews, and their families.