Hazel Juell

On Tuesday, October 24, 2023, at the age of 95, the magical, hilarious, spectacular Hazel Juell passed away.

She was born the third of seven children and raised on her family's farm in Coudersport, Pennsylvania. After skipping two grades she graduated high school at 16 and took off solo to California to join her sister and Uncle.

She acquired work and enrolled in Humboldt College. She found college didn't captivate her; higher education would have to wait. She had met Leonard Juell and he captured her heart. Together they created an amazing life for the next 62 years.

She would tell you that she was a life-long learner. I would add that she was an entrepreneur, the center and matriarch of our family, and in all areas of her life, she built community. Her answer to loneliness or a need in a new community was to create a social group. In Korbel it was a beer brewing group in her basement (probably illegal then). In Leggett she started a sewing group and a Sunday school. Then she saw the need for a church and organized the locals to build the First Presbyterian Church of Leggett.

With an infant, a toddler, and a young child, she packed up the family and moved to Leggett from Korbel to open and run The Famous One Log House, a gift shop along the Redwood Highway. Leonard had always wanted to be a business owner but he was still teaching school so in her competent manner, she orchestrated the move herself. For years she ran her successful business, raised her three children, and was supportive and active in her church and community. At 35, she surprised Leonard with their fourth and last child.

As her children aged and became more independent her quest for higher education became a priority again. She went back to Humboldt State University and graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree side by side with her oldest daughter Jeanette. Then she went on to her Masters in Psychology so she could pursue her career as a Marriage, Family, and Child Counselor. So many people have benefitted from her sage advice, 50 minutes per session.

Ever present, the drive for knowledge energized her to pursue her Doctorate at the University of San Francisco. To whooping cheers from her family, she walked across the stage and accepted the award for Dissertation of the Year for her doctoral thesis.

Now with her career in full swing, she looked for a community amongst her peers. She leased a large Victorian in Eureka and started Bayview Institute, a group practice of therapists and a place of healing and camaraderie. At the age of 86, she finally retired from her practice and settled into a life of gardening, bridge, writing groups, church choir, and deep conversations with many friends accompanied by her famous Manhattans.

She loved to share ideas, cherished her many "talking companions", and loved everything that grows, from personal growth, emotional growth, friendships, and babies, to her vast variety of succulents and begonias.

She was preceded in death by her husband Leonard Juell, her parents, and five siblings. She is survived by: her sister Mary Gage, her four children Stacey Juell (Sue), Jeanette Addis (Mike), Greg Juell (Barb), and Kristine Juell, her five grandchildren Tara Juell, Addie Juell, Ericson Juell, Sara Felsenthal (Noah), and Ben Trump (Michelle), and two great-grandchildren Alder and Coen Felsenthal.

Public viewing will be on November 1, 2023, from 4:00 - 7:00 at Paul's Mortuary in Arcata. A funeral service will be held at her church, the Arcata Presbyterian Church on November 2, 2023, at 12:30 with internment immediately following at Greenview Cemetery in Arcata. All her beloved friends and family are welcome to attend.

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