DORIS JEAN (MCCANDLISH) FOSTER Died at age 85, Saturday, August 6, 2011, at her home in Albuquerque, NM, after a battle with acute myeloid leukemia. D.J., as she was known, was born on July 22, 1926 in Wichita, KS to William Edward McCandlish and Mildred (nee Ward) of Hutchinson, KS. The family moved to Hollywood, CA, where she grew up and married young serviceman James Ernest Foster in 1946. The couple relocated to Clovis, NM and later to Santa Fe, NM, where James operated a hunting and fishing tour business. He was killed in a car crash in 1980. D.J. married her second husband, Alton R. Packard, a well-known Indian trader, in 1986. Al died in 2005. Her creativity included gardening, sewing quilts and other crafts, and baking. She became notable for her gingerbread Christmas decorations, which were featured in Santa Fean magazine. D.J. loved travel, had a wry sense of humor, was a great conversationalist, was an astute observer of life and a gracious hostess. D.J. is survived by brother Roland McCandlish of Running Springs, CA; son James Randall Foster of Gilmer, TX; daughter Judi Aki of Phoenix, AZ; grandson and caregiver Stanton McCandlish of Albuquerque, NM; granddaughter Sarah Campbell-Smith and newborn great-grandson Henry Smith of Chattanooga, TN.
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