Jean Bailey:  

I went to work for Western Gear in Lynwood after high school. Met my first husband there. We were married in 1971, lived in Corona Del Mar, had a son and a daughter, and divorced in 1984. I met my second husband, moved to San Diego, then to Costa Mesa, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo and he and I finally bought a home in Rancho Santa Margarita. He left me in 1993 with $1100 mortgage payments. I developed a non-invasive breast cancer, underwent radiation, did not lose the breast, but did lose the house to foreclosure. I moved to Balboa Island in 1994 and sub-let a garage apartment for 11 months. I met my current husband on Balboa Island. He lived in Novato, so I moved there. In July 1995 we moved to Susanville CA where he owned a Denny's. After nearly a year his partners bought him out and he left the restaurant business. I worked for the City of Susanville until June 2006. We had a small home on 6 acres of land overlooking the whole valley. In August of 2006 we put the house on the market. In January of 2007 I came to Riverside to stay with my in-laws and find work while my husband stayed up north to sell the house. In January of 2008 my husband called me and said that he was tired of being alone and the house wasn't sold so I had to go back to Susanville. The house finally sold in May of 2008 and on Memorial Day weekend we came home to Southern California. We bought a...Expand for more