Terrilee Jo Esparza
January 29, 1959 ~ April 20, 2023
Marietta Southern Cremations & Funerals
Terrilee Jo Esparza
Mother, Grandmother, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, and Friend to many, many people
Terrilee (Terri) Jo Scheffler was born on January 29, 1959, in Gothenburg Nebraska to Terrence Scheffler and Merlyn Aden Scheffler. She was baptized at the American Lutheran in Gothenburg. Raised in a military family, her father’s career took the family many places before she landed in California. At six months old she and her mother joined her dad in France and England on one of his many tours of duty.
After her first European tour, the family moved to Tacoma, Washington where she spent most of her childhood twirling a baton and tap dancing. Moving back to Gothenburg for a short time, Terrilee loved spending time with her Aunt Maryanne and cousins, visiting the lake house, and enjoying afternoon teas with her Grandma TD.
Before starting high school, the family moved to California where her father would continue his military career at McClellan Air Force base. At the age of fourteen, the first two weeks at Roseville High School were tough being the new kid in a small close-knit town. But of course, it did not take her long to make new (and would be life-long) friends.
Once a tiger, always a tiger. Roseville High School was a cherished time for Terri. She would remain an active alumnus dedicating her time building homecoming floats, planning crab feed fundraisers, and coordinating sober grad nights for all three of her children who also attended Roseville High.
After graduating in 1977, Terri went to work for Roseville Telephone Company starting on the switch board. She was a treasured and respected employee at Roseville Telephone Company, then Surewest Communications, now Consolidated Communications, for over forty years. She is fondly remembered to this day.
She married Corey Worthington in 1979 and they had a daughter, Jill Worthington (Herman). Corey and Terrilee spent their time camping, fishing, and playing softball for The Good, The Bad and The Ugly team. While both went on to remarry, they remained friends throughout her life.
She met Victor Esparza at Roseville Telephone Company and married in 1988. They had two children together, Mikaela Esparza (Goodman) and Tori Esparza. Victor and Terrilee loved their summer camping trips, working in the yard, playing co-ed soccer with the Cowsmos and Silver Bullets, hosting many get together with friends poolside after soccer, and serving peach margaritas at the annual margarita parties.
At the age of forty-two she survived breast cancer due to her unbelievable strength and the support of her closest friends and family. She completed a half marathon in support of the Leukemia society shortly thereafter and always supported the fight against cancer.
When she retired from Roseville Telephone, she went to work for First Tech Credit Union where she met another wonderful group of friends and colleagues.
She had a passion for gardening and found so much joy with a small, part-time job at Green Acres where she could learn about plants and help others on their journey to beautiful landscapes. She loved adopting (not) dead plants and bringing them back to life in her own garden, among her beloved Hydrangeas and Japanese Maple trees. Her dream was to become a master gardener one day.
Her hardworking and lighthearted spirit was always appreciated by her colleagues, and she received several recognitions throughout her career for her outstanding customer service and contributions.
Terrilee is most known for her creative genius and epic parties. She believed in community, cherished traditions, loved Christmas, treasured spending time in her garden and craft room, greatly enjoyed scrapbooking, and weekend travels with her life-long friends. Most of all she enjoyed being with her family, children, and grandchildren.
Terri always had a "project" working or staged; refinishing furniture or repurposing others' cast-off items. She had an eye for making things beautiful again. Our family will forever appreciate how she tracked and saved stories of the family through pictures, drawings, and simply recounting them to us all at get togethers.
She had recently left her Roseville home for Georgia where she was excited to start a new chapter of her life and being Momo to her newest grandchild. When she found out the news, her words were, “God told me to come to Georgia to spend time with Shane.”
She knew her time on earth was limited and planned to come out to California to be with the people she loved and spend time with her adored grandchildren; watching Carson play baseball, June ride horses, and Shane take her first steps. She was heartbroken when her condition took a turn, and that final wish would not come true.
From the onset of learning of the cancer on March 9 the family spent countless hours out dining in search of the perfect Reuben sandwich, finding happy hours in Kennesaw and Marietta, going to a Braves game, prepping for Easter, playing cards, simply enjoying the birds and winds whispering through the trees, and loving her family and California girlfriends who came out to be with her at Wood Park and in the hospital.
Terrilee passed on April 20, 2023, in Kennesaw Georgia surrounded by her closest loved ones. Preceded in death by her father, Terrence, baby brother, David Michael, and Grandmothers Thelma Peterson and Virginia Aden.
She is survived by her mother, Merlyn Scheffler, brother, Kenneth Dyke Scheffler, sister, Susie Immenschuh; daughters and sons-in-law, Jill Worthington-Esparza Herman and Eric Herman, Mikaela Esparza Goodman and Glen Willian Goodman, and Victoria Esparza; grandchildren, Carson Davis Runner, June Rae Herman, and Shane Evelyn Goodman; and many extended family members in Nebraska and California.
Terri was a devoted mother, momo (grandmother), daughter, sister, and friend. She treated everyone like they were family and welcomed them with loving arms into her home and life.
Her smile and laughs were contagious, her love infectious, and her bravery beyond astonishing. While her spirit lives in all those she loved, without her we are left with a huge hole in our hearts that could only be filled by her laughter and love. We will miss her more than any of us can comprehend. Her hugs, her love, and her Terrilee-isms are things that will be very difficult to live without.
The family sincerely appreciates everyone for your kind words, actions, and prayers. Services will be held on Saturday, July 29, 2023, at the Roseville Veterans Hall in Royer Park at 11:00am. Final resting place is with her children and her Kennesaw home in Georgia.
Downtown Roseville offers several parking options including short term street level parking throughout downtown. There is free parking available in the city garages located at 405 Vernon Street, 200 Oak Street, and 424 Oak Street.
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Love and miss you. Give Dad and brother David hug and kiss. I miss you all and wish you all were still here on earth with mom,Dyke andI. But I know they you all are pain free. Please watch over all of us
Love
Little sis
Susie