Mrs. Lola J. Hagan

August 10, 1926 - April 10, 2014

Lola J. Hagan passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, April 10, 2014. She was 87. Lola was born Lola J. Stokes and raised in Lexington, KY where she grew up on her family's farm and started school in a one-room school house. She and all her classmates, with whom she remained close for her entire life, went on to graduate from University High School in 1944. She then attended the University of Kentucky where she earned a BA and MA. It was at the University that she met William Hagan II (Bill) in 1947 and whom she married in 1950. Lola and Bill began a gradual westward migration in 1951 after having their first child, William Hagan III, in Lexington. From there, they moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where their girls Margaret, Mary, and Nancy were born. After Fort Wayne, the family moved to Palatine, Illinois; South Barrington, Illinois; and Omaha, Nebraska before retiring in Escondido, California in 1992. Lola treasured all the friends she made along the way and, just as she held on to her classmates from the Kentucky schoolhouse, she remained in close contact with the people she held dear. She said she never let a friend get away. Lola was dedicated to her church, community and country. She served as a deacon, an elder, and on the Board of Trustees of the Presbyterian Church, in some cases as the first woman to do so. She often played organ or piano for services, a skill she taught herself. She started several community interest groups and spent decades driving people to doctor appointments and for cancer treatments. She donated 13 gallons of blood over her lifetime. She was also an avid tennis player and played into her 80's. Lola's car was easy to spot - she always had a small American flag attached and waving as she drove. Just as she would not let a friend get away, Lola's friends and family will remember her fondly and, in that sense, never let her get away either. Lola is survived by her loving husband of 64 years, William Hagan II; son, William (Kathy) Hagan III; daughters, Margaret Hagan, Mary (Jim) Miller, Nancy (Don) Wickett; sister, Mary Louise Quisenberry; five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her grandsons, Philip and Todd Wickett. A funeral service will be held to honor her life on Wednesday, April 16, 2014, 10:00 a.m., at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1500 South Juniper St., Escondido, CA 92025.