Vanderlip known for her warmth, generosity

RPV — Suzanne Vanderlip, widow of John Vanderlip, died on the morning of Wednesday, Nov. 17. She was 87 years old.

Born on Sept. 23, 1923, in Nice, France, Vanderlip was the youngest of five children. Throughout her lifetime, she saw many foreign lands, including Egypt, Lebanon, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. However, she spent most of her years living in Southern California.

In 1971, Vanderlip married John Vanderlip, the youngest child of Narcissa Cox Vanderlip and Frank Vanderlip Sr., a banker who purchased the 16,000-acre plot of land known as Palos Verdes for $1.5 million in 1913.

She and her two children from her previous marriage, Don Christy Jr. and Dominique DeBorba, moved into John’s home in the Westfield neighborhood on the Hill in 1972.

The family moved into the Old Ranch Cottage, also known as “the Cottage” — the first home built on the Peninsula — in the Portuguese Bend area of Rancho Palos Verdes in 1977. They began restoring the historic Vanderlip Drive property, built in 1916, at that time.

A homemaker, Vanderlip received joy from entertaining and often hosted parties for local politicians like Ken Dyda and the late John McTaggart, who both served on the RPV City Council.

“My mom was vivacious, bubbly, very social, and she loved people. … She loved having people over [to] her house, making the place beautiful and having wonderful food,” Christy said. “To her, that was very important.

“She always wanted to keep the house immaculate. My mom was an incredible cook. … Her spaghetti was to die for,” he added.

During major holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, the entire family would gather at the Cottage, located next door to the famed Villa Narcissa, where the recently deceased Elin Vanderlip, wife of Kelvin Vanderlip, resided.

Jennifer Reichert affectionately recalled spending Easter with Vanderlip and enjoying an egg hunt in the rose garden.

“It’s sad for me to think that it’s the end of all of that for us. … Considering I’m her great niece, we were pretty close,” said Reichert, an English teacher at Palos Verdes High School.

“She was a really interesting woman,” she added.

Vanderlip spoke French, Arabic, Spanish, Italian and English. She also was involved with the Rancho de los Palos Verdes Historical Society.

Marie Reichert, Jennifer’s mother, said she hopes people remember her aunt “for being a real great lady, and kind and generous. I think that those were her outstanding characteristics.”

While Vanderlip had the reputation of always smiling and laughing, she was devastated by the death of her husband, John, in 2001. He was 86.

It was then that Vanderlip’s health began to deteriorate. She succumbed to congestive heart failure. She suffered from diabetes since the 1990s and in her final days battled Alzheimer’s, and liver and kidney problems.

With the other Vanderlip children — Narcissa, Charlotte, Frank Jr., Virginia and Kelvin — and their spouses deceased, Vanderlip’s death marks the end of that generation.

“I know it meant a lot to my mom, and she was very proud to be involved with the family,” DeBorba said of her mother marrying into the famous family.

A fond memory for Christy was when the family traveled to New York for the wedding of John Vanderlip Jr., Vanderlip’s stepson, at the renowned Beachwood estate in 1988.

“She had a heart of gold, [and was] very caring,” Christy said. “If she loved you, she made you feel special.”

Vanderlip took great pleasure in meeting people, and going to plays and musicals — “Phantom of the Opera” was one of her favorites, Christy said.

DeBorba described Vanderlip as a “wonderful mother and grandmother.”

“She loved life — she was a little firecracker. … She lived life to its fullest. She lived a good, long life, and she always did it on her own terms,” she said.

A memorial will be held on Friday, Nov. 26 at 11 a.m. at St. John Fisher Catholic Church, 5448 Crest Road in RPV.

Vanderlip is survived by her children, Don Christy Jr. and Dominique DeBorba, her son-in-law, Dan DeBorba, grandchildren Justine, 24, Alison, 20, and Evan DeBorba, 16, and nieces Marie Reichert, Monica Gee and Coquette McShane.

“We all loved her very much,” said Marie Reichert, of Rolling Hills Estates. “She was a really good person.”

aratcliff@pvnews.com