Obituaries

Matilda “Tillie” Sites died peacefully on March 20, 2020 in Fremont, California at the age of 100 years and 6 months. Tillie is survived by her daughter, Laura Sites-Reynolds of Portola, California and grandson, Ian Reynolds of Fremont, California. She is also survived by two step-daughters, Glenda Dearborn of Petersburg, West Virginia and Carole Smith of Auburn, California and three step-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Glen Sites of Fremont, California who passed in 2013 at the age of 93.

Tillie was born on September 20, 1919 in South Valley, Cattaraugus County, New York, to Cleve and May Flagg. After a tough start in life, being raised during the Great Depression, Tillie put herself through school and became an R.N. She was an early supporter of women’s rights and specifically a woman’s right to choose, having seen firsthand the disparities in reproductive healthcare available between rich and poor women in our society. Tillie grew tired of the frigid upstate NY winters and moved to Honolulu, Hawaii after WWII where she worked as an OB/GYN nurse at Queens Hospital. It was in Honolulu that she also met her husband of over 55 years, who was a Navy pilot serving out of Hickam Air Base. Once Glen was decommissioned from the Navy and was assigned to the FAA’s Oakland Flight Service Center, they moved to the Bay Area, settling in Fremont in 1965.

To continue her support of medical research, Tillie had arranged to leave her body to the Willed Body Program at Stanford University so they could “figure out why she lived so long”. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 concerns that program is on hold and other private arrangements will be made. Please help celebrate Tillie’s very long life by donating to Planned Parenthood in her name.