In loving memory of Monica Elizabeth Wilkerson
November 16, 2024
Monica Elizabeth Wilkerson died peacefully at her home in Encinitas, CA on November 16, 2024, exactly two weeks short of her 96th birthday.
Born in a sod house to John and Beatrice Liston in Sturgis, South Dakota, she was the third of four children.
Her earliest memory was jumping from the low-slung roof on a dare from her brothers.
As the Great Depression took hold, her parents bought a used jalopy and took the family West.
They eventually settled along the Columbia River near Portland, OR, where her father found steady work in the paper mills.
In her teens, she and her brothers spent summers traversing Oregon and Washington, picking apples and berries for wages.
But after WWII was underway, she lost her oldest brother John, who died aboard a US Navy ship struck by a Kamikaze pilot.
In 1949, she married Richard Charles Wilkerson in Vancouver, WA, where her four children would be born.
In the mid-1960s, the entire family relocated to Southern California to be closer to friends and extended family. As her children grew, Monica ventured into the workforce.
After long stints at the county courthouse and DMV, she took a real estate course on a whim and found her true calling. Monica was an award-winning Realtor and broker based in Encinitas, CA when her marriage ended in the late 1970s.
Her drive and talents took her from selling luxury homes and ocean-view lots in San Diego and Orange counties to the glitzy Las Vegas boom of the 1990s.
There, she found ample opportunity and an ideal spot for her vivacious lifestyle.
Her frequent and exuberant house parties convinced many a friend and client to relocate to her adopted hometown.
She also discovered a love of cruise travel and visited Europe, Asia and Hawaii as often as her work schedule allowed, often with a gentleman friend who, like most, struggled to keep up with her.
Monica sold homes in Las Vegas well into her 70s until California called her back; first to Palm Desert and eventually coastal Carlsbad.
In 2022, she moved to an active retirement community in Encinitas, where she frequently hopped on their van to her favorite shops, restaurants and attractions. Most importantly, she was just around the corner from her lifelong friend, Jean Davis.
When Jean passed in September of 2024, Monica declared that she, too, was ready for her next chapter, and went under hospice care in early October.
In the following weeks, she said loving goodbyes to all who came to her side or reached out by telephone.
Monica is survived by her children, Randy Wilkerson (Nancy) of Morro Bay, CA, Lisa Cowperthwaite of Lake Havasu City, AZ, and Jeffrey Wilkerson of Oceanside, CA, 6 grandchildren, 6 nieces and nephews and 10 great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her son, Richard “Rick” Wilkerson (aka Mark Adams) of Georgia and her two other brothers, Frederick Liston of Milwaukie and Pacific City, OR and Dale Liston of Torrance, CA.
Her former spouse, Richard Wilkerson, pre-deceased her in 1996.
Following Monica’s wishes, there will be no services. Neptune Society of San Diego handled final arrangements, which she had made for herself nearly 30 years prior.
The family wishes to express deepest appreciation for the team members of Pacifica Senior Living, St. Paul’s PACE clinic and Silverado Hospice, who fashioned a warm and supportive network for Monica’s long, full life to come to a close.
