Obituary of Ara Alice Mitchell

Our mother was a fun and beautiful woman. She was caring, thoughtful, hardworking, compassionate, loving and so much more. It was so difficult to think of all of the words that described our mother as a person and how much she meant to us. Our mother was a homemaker her entire life. Many people don't think of this as a job, but we can tell you that she worked harder than most women we know. Life was not always easy for her, she suffered many losses, and had her own personal battle with cancer (and beat it). Our mother worked hard to raise her family and was always there for us when we needed her. She was fun to be around, we were always entertaining friends, playing music, horseshoes and BBQing. She was an amazing woman who taught us a lot. She always worked hard, never complained and was there when you needed her. She was not only our mother, but also our friend. We will miss her every day for as long as we live. Ara Alice (Penny) Mitchell was born in Cullman, Alabama on March 7, 1926. She entered Heaven's gates on May 10, 2015. Ara lived most of her life in Sunnyvale, California, but spent her younger years in Madera, California. She attended Madera High School where her and her twin sister were drum-majorettes in the marching band. A loving mother and homemaker, Ara loved spending time with her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Over the years she loved spending time with close friends, traveling, gardening (especially proud of her beef steak tomatoes), and working on puzzles. She loved to watch T.V. especially her favorite game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. She was also a huge 49er football fan and could be seen wearing their colors proudly. Ara loved to look her best and had a real flair with clothing. If it shined, sparkled or had fringe on it she wore it! Ara was predeceased by her first husband Stanford P. Pennington and her second husband George W. (Buck) Mitchell. She was also predeceased by her daughter Paulette Pennington (Lent), her twin sister Ora S. Banks (Cabezut), sister Wilma Banks (Hart), brothers, Elbert Banks, Curtis Banks, Lewis Banks and Hollis Banks. Ara is survived by her sister Irene E. Banks (Ragnetti), her nine children, Alice, Ronnie, David, Debbie, Sherry, Terri, Jerri, Rick and Randy. She is also survived by 23 grandchildren, 33 great-grandchildren and 18 great-great grandchildren.




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