Leilani Pearl Guerrero-Cleeton

Leilani Pearl Guerrero-Cleeton was taken from us all too tragically and suddenly on June 21, 2020. She was 57 years young.

Born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Urbano and Manuela Guerrero on November 24, 1962. Leilani Pearl was the only child, Thanksgiving Day gift that kept giving. Her family relocated many times as Navy couples so often did, but eventually landed in Vallejo where she spent the majority of her latter childhood and early teenage years before the family's final move to beautiful bucolic Benicia.

A proud graduate of Pennycook Elementary, St Vincent's Junior, and Hogan Senior High Schools (the latter where she was crowned both Filipino Community Queen and Homecoming Queen), she attended San Francisco Junior College and San Francisco State University before transferring to San Jose State University where she graduated with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Political Science in 1984.

It was at University where she began dating Stephen Cleeton, and the couple eventually married in 1989 in a wedding attended by over 500 of her closest friends and family. Her maid of honor and eventual mother of her first God Children, Maria Gamulo Owen returned the favor in the same year and the pair have been "comadres" ever since...

Leilani received her Teaching Credentials and worked at Mandala's Children's House as an Early Childhood Educator prior to "retiring" first to Benicia and later to the Silicon Valley's southern bedroom community of Morgan Hill. She devoted focus on raising the young couple's two children Kalea Jade and Dane Kealoha and supported husband Stephen as his Engineering and Technologies career required significant travel and long hours. Leilani ensured all Church, School, extracurricular events, athletics and responsibilities of the couple's kids were always met and successful, and along the way she forged even more lifelong relationships with her St. Catherine's Crew and later Britton Middle and Live Oak High School contemporaries where two more of her dearest friends for life Chevic Tumas and Emily Bettencourt began.

Her Cousins' Crew and Philadelphia Kids' group demonstrated Leilani had a deep respect for her family and history, that might have only been narrowly superseded by her love of her doggies and her passion for all things couture designer. Amongst her most enjoyable endeavors was leveraging her honed Facebook and Instagram skillsets as head of social media for the preeminent Morgan Hill Fine Jewelry establishment "Jewel Box" where she made even more lasting friendships.

Leilani joined her father Urbano in Heaven. She has her mother Manuela Guerrero, husband Stephen, daughter Kalea, son Dane, and her dog-children Fabiola and Rafael left on this Earth to mourn her passing.

Leilani was laid to eternal rest on July 21, 2020 in her family enclave at All Souls Cemetery, Vallejo, California surrounded by over 200 friends and family members including Aunties, Uncles, and her beautiful Cousins (+40 actually / virtually).

Published in Morgan Hill Times · August 5, 2020