Valentina Figueiredo Pechulis

Valentina (Tina) Figueiredo Pechulis, of Huntington Beach, CA, passed away on June 7 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. She is survived by the love of her life, Joseph Pechulis. She was the loving mother of Teresa and her husband Stephen, Debbie and her husband Rob, Matt and his wife Laurie, and Chris and his wife Georgie. She was the adored Gaga (grandmother) of Nicole, Nicholas, Mark, Elizabeth, Katherine, Mason, Zulmira, and Porter. She is survived by her three brothers, Antero, Orlando and Serafim and predeceased by her loving parents and sister Isabel. She was beloved by many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Tina was born November 20, 1941 in Trinta, Portugal. She immigrated to the US in 1956, fell in love with Joe and married him in 1963. She resided in New London, CT, Waterford, CT, Monroe, CT and moved to Huntington Beach, CA in 2017 to be closer to her youngest grandchildren. One indisputable fact about Tina was that she was the best cook in the universe! These skills formed early at the age of 7 in Portugal cooking for her ill mom and developed further when she moved to the US and practiced home cooking and baking techniques which she taught to her children. Tina fully matured during her married life as a self-taught homemaker providing a wide variety of fresh home cooked/baked foods for her children and grandchildren. She skillfully applied her cooking expertise at Connecticut College’s snack shop and Stepney Elementary School in Monroe as the chef and manager where she was known for making amazing meals. Her passion for cooking instilled a true sense of family togetherness that will live on forever through their love of her and all the love and creativity she put into every meal she made. Her love, kindness, smile and awesome cooking will be missed by all who knew her. A wake will be held on Monday, June 13 from 5:00 – 7:00 pm at Heritage-Dilday Memorial Services in Huntington Beach. The funeral will take place on June 14 at 10:00 am at Saints Simon & Jude Church in Huntington Beach immediately followed by a burial at Good Shepard Cemetery. A memorial service to celebrate her life will be held in Connecticut at a later date. Donations to PanCAN (https://www.pancan.org/) can be made in lieu of flowers.