Ellen L. Brooks

Ellen Pearce Brooks, 1944-2021 Ellen Louise Pearce Brooks passed away July 11, 2021 of vascular dementia in Cottonwood, Arizona at age 76. Ellen was born Oct. 19, 1944, to Marion Guild Pearce and William Earnest Pearce of Elmhurst, Ill. She is a 1962 graduate of York Community High School. Ellen earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Grinnell College in Iowa. She joined the Peace Corps and spent one summer in Kenya. Ellen moved to Washington, D.C. area in the late 1960s. There, she paused her government career to raise her children, Jason. Tracey and Tyler, and eventually working for the U.S. Census Bureau in 1980 and then beginning a long career with the U.S. Air Force in contracting. Ellen moved her family to Lancaster, Calif., to continue her Air Force career as a civil servant. She retired in 2002 and retired to Sedona, Arizona, in 2006. Ellen enjoyed quilting, many types of crafts, was a cat lover and traveled when she could. She survived many health complications throughout her life, including ovarian cancer in her 50s. Ellen is preceded in death by her parents. Her ex-husband and father of her children, Cecil Rucker Brooks, passed away in 2014. Ellen is survived by her children, Jason Brooks, of Cottonwood, Arizona; Tyler Brooks of Ventura, Calif. and Tracey Brooks Bird (Keenan Bird) of Rocklin, Calif.; grandchildren Lorelei Brooks and Dean Brooks; sisters Diana Pearce (George Wright) of Seattle, Wash.; Peggy Pearce Morgan (Jim Morgan) of Plainfield, Wisc. and Sarah Pearce of Harrisburg, Penn. Services are still pending this time. Special thanks to Dr. Brenda Howland, Rob Schultz, Rev. Fred Mast and everyone at CareFree Living, including Monique, Kathy, Jessica and Becky for helping care for Ellen in her later years. Ellen was a member of the Sedona United Methodist Church. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Verde Valley Caregivers or the American Cancer Society.