Elvira Michaels Snyder was born in Los Angeles, California on March 3, 1922, to Irene Whittley and Charles Michaels. Elvira (much better known as Elve) was the eldest of three children born to Irene and Charles — she had a sister, Thelma (Tillie) and a brother, Charles (Chuck).

Elve’s very interesting family history included roots on beautiful Catalina Island. Her mother Irene was born on the island, and Irene’s parents (Elve’s grandparents) raised sheep there. Eventually the family moved to the mainland.

Elve met her husband-to-be, Benjamin Franklin (Ben) Snyder, at Toland Way Elementary School in Highland Park, and they married young, eventually having a family of three children, Dorothy (“Tinker”), Sheila, and Jon. Irene also joined the household when older and in delicate health, and Elve was a devoted caregiver to her mother. In addition to her home responsibilities, Elve had a 25-year-long career with Boys Markets, including managing the General Merchandise section of the market in which she worked.

Elve was an accomplished seamstress and needlework aficionado. She turned out professional-quality clothing, even sewing all of the dresses for her granddaughter Amber’s wedding, and created beautiful afghans and other crochet work to decorate each home in which she lived. Elve set high standards for herself regarding the appearance of her homes, such that someone arriving at her doorstep would be unlikely to ever hear “Sorry, the place is a mess!”

Elve and Ben were married for 58 years, until Ben’s death in 1996. Elvira Michaels Snyder is survived by three children, nine grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren, and 17 great-great grandchildren (with two more on the way). 

In lieu of flowers donations can be made to:

https://www.gofundme.com/Raelynn1

or

https://www.cityofhope.org