Eleanor Rosalie Brissette

Eleanor Rosalie Brissette took the creator’s hand March 22, 2023 at St. Joseph Hospital here in Eureka. She passed surrounded by her loved ones by her bedside. She had a big case of pneumonia in her lungs, arthritis all through her body and as of a month ago found cancer forming in her gallbladder.

She was born October 16,1946 in San Francisco to two full-blood Yurok parents, Herman and Esther Quinn. She was the second daughter. Her siblings were her oldest brother Richard W. Quinn, little sister Jacqueline K. Hayden (Quinn) and little brother William C. Quinn and will be happy to see her on the other side.

Eleanor’s parents and other siblings moved back to their homestead at Tully Creek on the Klamath River. Her schooling began at Martin’s Ferry, in a small one-room on the side of the mountain. She attended Hoopa Elementary and graduated from Hoopa High School, class of 1965.

She had big dreams. She always wanted to be a flight attendant but her father and mother wouldn’t let her, but her Uncle Kenny still gave her hope to one day.

She then decided to go to beauty school after high school. Shortly through all planning she met her husband Richard Pete Hayden Sr. She was married and had her first baby girl, Leona M. Hayden. Not long after, she had her first son Richard Pete Hayden Jr. and one more, Forrest A Hayden. In the 1970s Richard Sr. was in a fatal crash and died on the way to the hospital.

Eleanor then moved out of Hoopa to Eureka, where she became a waitress at the Vance bar in Old Town. She later met Edward Brissette and married in 1972. She later had three children, Cynthia Eunice Brissette and her twins, Michelle Lea and Michael Wayne Brissette.

Eleanor struggled with alcohol abuse and took some tries to fight it.

She always had a job or volunteered.

She worked at the Vance bar then at the Fireside Inn hotel as head housekeeper. She worked for NCIDC at the gift shop, working with Keith Taylor and Dolly. She worked in home care for years. Shout to Michel in the brown jacket for always helping her find her best to take care of in her career.

She liked to volunteer at the logging conference, helping the firefighters and doing security at Elders Gathering.

Eleanor was a phenomenal pool player and coached many pool teams over her years. She was the queen of pool. Shout out to bars that let her host games.

Eleanor tried to get all her kids back into ceremony dances. Nothing made her more happy than seeing her family members or grandkids in them. Sometimes she would make them go up really early wherever one was. She really enjoyed the Klamath one. Eleanor’s family had everything before the fire and flood in 1965. It’s where native families should be during summer time. There was a time when it was the party zone. All that had change and it was safe to return and bring your families back. Eleanor was very proud of her nephews getting down, some brought songs back to our family and she got to see regalia her niece made sometimes from the beginning to the end. She was very proud of them. It brought some of her family back to her. Some of her last words were, “I’m not gonna make it to brush dances this year.” Little does she know she gets front-row seats forever. I’m jealous she’s up there with some pretty good singers, especially with all her family.

Eleanor was a gold chain, a beautiful red rose blooming in winter, a 49ers women lover, Elvis music lover for life and a strong Yurok native woman … even if she never saw it, she was.

You were light for so many. Will be missed truly.

She was the aunt and great aunt to Charles Hayden, Herman Quinn, Raymond Hayden, Rhonda Hayden Bigovich & Andy Bigovich,Shannon Quinn, Marilyn Quinn and William Quinn Jr.,Valerie Hayden, Elvira Hayden, Edward Hayden, Pergish Hayden, Russell Hayden, Sean Hayden, Xococ Hayden, Herman Quinn Jr, Brittany, Skyler her twins, Quiloeh,Eli, GeneQuinn, Ava Quinn, Kipoon, Jose, Julia, Lisa bean, Alissa Myers,Austin Fitzgerald ,Tyler Fitzgerald and some I may have missed or gone way too soon.

Her cousin Brinda & Brian, Star, Janice, Millie Ann,Trudi, Bert, Nathan, Lillian III Quinn, Nikkia, cousin Stewart, the Franks and their children, cousin David Norris and many others.

She loved her grandkids in many ways, Joey Montgomery, his children, Richard Pete Hayden the third,Lisa Marie Hayden, her children, Forrest Hayden Jr, Amber Hayden, her children, Mariah Star, Crysta,l her children, Ashley Hayden, her children, Arianna Hayden, Kendal Hayden, Destiny Hayden, Brandon Dortch, Dwane Brissette, Shania Brissette, her babies Cataleyah and Keanu, Michelle Brissette, Daniel Brissette, Danielle Muro, her children, Angel Muro, her son Killian, Michael Brissette Jr, his baby and Nicole Ramirez, her babies Dentalia, Malia and Raylynn.

Her soul and presence will be truly missed.

Big thank you to Eureka transit for getting her work being available since the 1990s and UNIHS pick-up crew, NCIDC for helping her when she had travel out of town for appointments or in need of anything, UNIHS clinic…

I would also like to give big thanks to the staff at St. Joseph hospital, the ER department and ICU unit.

Services will be held at the Sanders funeral home starting with viewing Thursday March 30th, 2023 from 4-6 p.m.

Funeral will be held Friday at 10 a.m., followed by a pot luck starting 2 p.m. at the Best Western Plus Bayshore Inn banquet room.

Asking everyone to wear red in honor of her team, the 49ers, or an Elvis shirt if you have one.