Pok Cha Ouellette's Obituary
Ceci "Pok Cha" Ouellette, born Yim, passed away peacefully on March 4, 2024, in La Jolla, CA, at the age of 81. She was known by many names - Pok Cha, Ceci, Cecilia, Yim - and touched the lives of all who knew her with her kindness, generosity, and unwavering spirit.
Ceci was born on January 24, 1943, in Iksan, South Korea, to her late parents Gui-ok Jin and Mansoo Im. She was a beloved mother to her daughter Denise Yim Ouellette and son Lionel Everett Ouellette. Ceci is survived by her sisters Soon Im Park and Hyo Cha Kim, along with many nieces and nephews in the United States and South Korea.
A viewing will be held on Sunday, March 24, 2024, from 12-2pm at Introvigne Funeral Home, Inc., 51 East Main St., Stafford Springs, CT. A Funeral Mass in Ceci's honor will take place on Monday, March 25, 2024, at 11am at St. Edward Church, 55 High St., Stafford Springs, CT followed by burial at St. Edward Cemetery around noon (located behind the Dunkin Donuts - 22 West Stafford Rd, Stafford Springs, CT).
There will be a Celebration of Life gathering after the burial service, at the American Legion Post 26 to share stories, pictures and food (American & Korean style). It is located at 10 Monson Rd, Stafford Springs, CT 06076. Please upload any pictures and / or memories to this site for everyone to share.
Those who are able and wish to pay their respects are welcome to attend any part.
There will be a gathering after the cemetery at the American Legion to share stories, pictures and food.
In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations be made to the Santa Ynez Valley Children's Museum in memory of Ceci Ouellette. Some of the things that Mom loved more than anything else in the world besides her family and friends were children, nature and animals. Contributions will help create a unique space for children to play outdoors, reflecting Ceci's deep love for children and nature.
For more information - https://syvchildrensmuseum.com/
Online donations can be made at https://checkout.square.site/merchant/ML2HB4MDVZ92S/checkout/XQOSVGHMIFM3NOPJRPGX6R6K with a reference to Pok Cha, Ceci, Cecilia, or Yim (Ouellette). You will be able to add her name after you click on the "checkout" button.
Pok Cha was born and raised in South Korea and was the beloved youngest of 10, 7 girls and 3 boys in total. She was a happy child and was very close to her family. In 1968 she met and married Rodney Ouellette and soon moved to Connecticut where they had 2 children, Denise and Lionel. In 1979 Pok Cha and her family moved to New York City, first briefly to Brooklyn, then to Flushing until 2006. From there Pok Cha moved to Henderson, NV until the beginning of 2020, when she moved to San Diego, CA. Pok Cha and Rodney successfully owned and ran 3 different businesses; a stationary & sundries store in Flushing, then a deli in Manhattan and then a dry cleaners on the upper west side of Manhattan. Pok Cha loved to get to know people and that caring combined with an incredible work ethic, an unparalleled dedication to making a better life for her children and an innate intelligence meant that even though they had never run any kind of business before or those particular type of businesses, the New York City Ouellette’s made each one a success. For nearly every year that she lived in the United States, in Connecticut and New York, she welcomed relatives from Korea into her home. She made it possible for them to get a fresh start in a new homeland, much the way that her Ouellette family welcomed her from Korea. In so many ways, Pok Cha personified achieving the American Dream through hard work and resilience. She loved her adopted homeland, even as she missed her land of birth and family.
You may have known her as sister, aunt, wife, friend, kindred spirit, or as I have known her, as mother. She went by Pok Cha, Ceci, Cecilia, Yim and various names in Korean (and sometimes she was even called Pork Chop when folks were unfamiliar with the combination of letters that make up her first name). However you may have known her, you knew her as the beautiful, loving, giving, spiritual, and the oh, so stubborn woman who never met anyone that couldn’t be her new best friend. She never saw a child she couldn’t love to pieces, a loved one that she could not feed, a flower she could pass by without smelling and admiring, a weed or dead leaf that she didn’t clean up and if there was some way she could fix things, and make them better / or happier / or heal relationships, she would do anything to make it happen. If you came for a visit, you always left with a gift or at least some Korean food. Mom lived life so enthusiastically and with the joy, wonder and openness of a child, that people were always drawn to her light. She was never happier than when she could spend time with friends and family, be around children and animals, work in her garden and be out in nature. Later in life she took up hiking and golf. She loved hiking the hills behind her home in Henderson, Nevada and the trails of Kauai, HI. Her heart had found another place to call home in the gardens, trails and ocean waters of Kauai. In many ways, the older she grew, the more adventurous she became. At 68, she hiked with her local hiking club to the top of Mt. Charleston, 11,916 feet. You would often find her walking all 18 holes of the various golf courses around Las Vegas when there were senior discounts….no golf carts for her! And, whenever possible, she loved to sing and dance. As a devout Catholic, her faith in God was a keystone to who she was. She had a gift for finding God everywhere. She believed with her whole heart that her family and friends that had gone before, would be waiting for her in Heaven. She will be dearly missed!
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