Phoebe C. Aspinall

April 1, 1929 - July 2, 2011 Phoebe C. Aspinall (82) went home to be with her Savior, Jesus Christ on July 2, 2011, after a long illness. "Charlie", as she preferred to be called, was born on April 1, 1929 in Mena, Arkansas, quite an April Fool's day surprise to her parents. Charlie was the youngest of Martha Lavinia and De Roa Cotten's 8 children, the youngest being 7 yrs. old at her birth. Soon after Charlie was born, the family moved back to Texas where they had previously lived. During World War II, one of Charlie's older brothers was stationed in San Francisco. He loved California so much that he moved many of the family members to the West coast. They settled in the Sacramento area, where Charlie finished high school, graduating a full year earlier than her class due to her outstanding performance. Charlie worked through most of her life in various office situations. Eventually she met and married John Henry Aspinall (or "Harry", as he preferred to be called), a best friend of one of her supervisors. Together with his best friend, "Harry" had moved to the US from Liverpool, England. They were married 37 years, until his passing. Charlie had many interests and talents. She was a wonderful pianist, having taught herself to play by ear. She wrote and published many songs, she loved singing, as did Harry, and they had lots of family sing a longs. Charlie and Harry's love of music was passed down to several of their children. Other interests included gardening, painting, watching "old" movies, and authoring many short stories. She was a wonderful cook and a loving mother. Even though times were often lean, she made sure that her children had "creative" opportunities, whether it be sports, art, music or even just learning to cook at home. She was a wonderful and loving mother of 6 children: Karen Schmall (Dennis) of Yuba City, Ca.; Kristen Willis (Bruce) of Roseville, Ca.; Kathryn Mihalek (Henry) of Fulton, NY.; Kevin Aspinall of Yuba City, Ca.; Kelly Long of Lakewood, Co.; and Kim Hood (Bob) of Lakewood, Co. Charlie was always there for her children through many times of hardship. She is also survived by 11 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren, and she loved them all. Charlie was known for her infectious sense of humor, and passed that along to many of her children and grandchildren as well. She was preceded in death by her husband, Goodwin H. Schnell, Harry Aspinall, and her oldest grandson, Michael Schmall. She will be greatly missed by all those who knew her, but we are comforted in knowing that she has been welcomed into her Savior's arms, and re-united with loved ones.