Dolores “Dee” Byrne

Dolores Amanda Konrad (Dee) Byrne, champion bridge player, volunteer extraordinaire, devoted mom, grandma, sister and friend, age 91, in Oakland, CA.

Born Jan 21, 1925 in Wishek, North Dakota to Christine and Gottfried Konrad. Dee and her 9 siblings grew up on the family farm outside of Sacramento, having moved west in a converted school bus during the Dust Bowl. After graduating Galt High and working for the State of California, 1948 found Dee in Frankfurt, Germany, where she put her German and secretarial skills to work for the US Army Air Corps. Here she met future husband John Byrne, a Berlin Air Lift pilot. They married at Lodi, CA in 1950.

As an Air Force wife, Dee moved her family back and forth across the US, finally returning to Atwater, CA in 1960. She took up tournament bridge and became a Life Master, specially cherishing a win over Omar Sharif. Dee volunteered tirelessly, serving as everything from a Cub Scout den mother and Girl Scout council coordinator to the store manager for the Modesto Association for Retarded Citizens. After ‘retiring’, Dee and John moved to Monterey CA, where Dee settled into enjoying her 5 grandkids --and found time to certify as a paralegal, volunteer as office manager and mediator for the Conflict Resolution and Mediation Center, and serve as a People to People Citizen Ambassador to Russia. They really don’t make them like Mom anymore!

Survived by her children Christine (Jim Veitch) and Michael (Alice) Byrne; grandchildren Sean and Patrick Byrne, Caitlin Byrne Frett, Victoria and Meg Veitch; great-grandson Braydon Byrne; and dear sisters Dorothy Konrad and Ione Markel.

A celebration of Dee’s life will be held Sat, Aug 13, 2016, in Pacific Grove, CA. Please contact the family at deeslifecelebration@gmail.com. Donations to the Alzheimer’s Association are requested in lieu of flowers.