ILA CAROL (SLOAN) DOWNS
Ila Carol (Sloan) Downs, age 94, of Manteca, CA went to be with Jesus on Thursday, September 26, 2019 after a valiant battle with dementia. Her daughter, Susan, was at her side with long distance support from many family and friends.
A Celebration of Life will begin at 2:00 PM on Sunday, October 13, 2019, at Northgate Community Church, 650 Northgate Drive, Manteca, CA, with reception to follow. A private interment is scheduled for a later date at East Lawn Memorial Park in Sacramento, CA.
Carol was born on May 23, 1925, in Elkhart, KS to Barton Clay Sloan and Lota Elsie (Acheson) Sloan. She was the third of four children.
She met Joseph C.M. Downs at Boise High School (Idaho). They married on November 6, 1942 in Oklahoma after Joseph was drafted into the US Navy during WWII. They had five children, Paul Charles Downs, Margaret Ilene Downs Hamley (Les), James Barton Downs, Timothy Joseph Downs (Denise), and Susan Carol Downs Kuhn (Glenn).
Carol and her family lived in Boise while Joseph completed pre-med at College of Idaho in Caldwell. They moved to Boston in 1950 so that Joseph could complete his Doctor of Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine while Carol worked at the Raytheon Company in Cambridge to help support the family. In
1958 the family moved to Mountain Home, Idaho. When the marriage ended in 1968, Carol and her three younger children (James, Timothy and Susan) moved to California to be closer to her family. Carol loved decorating and bringing beauty to those around her. She worked as a displayer and then as a manager for Home Interiors & Gifts, Inc. for many years in Sacramento. She earned many bonuses and trips with Home Interiors. From Sacramento, Carol moved to Lodi to be closer to her daughter Susan and her family. She moved to Manteca in 2008 when she began to require more care.
Carol was predeceased by her parents, her siblings Ralph Sloan and Vauda Sloan Bortles, and her sons James (1972), Paul (1998) and Timothy (2004). She is survived by her sister Doris Sloan DeVaughn, daughters Margaret Hamley (Caldwell, ID) and Susan Kuhn (Manteca, CA), grandchildren Ian Downs, Jodella Wheat, Ryan Hamley, Anthony Hamley, Kristen Downs, Lauren Ferguson, Bradley Kuhn, Jeffrey Kuhn, Andrew Kuhn and Katherine Kuhn. She also is survived by 13 great-grandchildren, as well as many nieces, nephews and loving friends.
Throughout Carol’s life, she worshiped her Lord and Savior, praising Him in song and by expertly playing the piano and organ for church services.
Carol’s life may be remembered with a donation to International Students, Inc. For information about this mission, please go to www.isionline.org/About/ WhatWeBelieve.aspx . Make checks out to International Students, Inc. Include a memo on the check: A/C #5718. Please mail your check to ISI, PO Box C, Colorado Springs, CO 80901. If you prefer to give online, please do so at www.isionline.org/Donate/ IanandErinDowns.aspx .
Please sign the guest book at lodinews.com/ guestbook.