Obituary of Shannon Kathleen Collins

Friends and family will gather in Santa Cruz on Saturday, June 9 to honor the life of Shannon Collins who was tragically taken from us on May 7, 2012. Born in San Diego, California, she was 38 years old. Shannon was daughter of a naval officer, and had the opportunity to meet people from various backgrounds, at a very early age. She moved to Santa Cruz 16 years ago, and will be deeply missed by many early friends in her life and colleagues from her days at U.C.S.C.; where she earned her degree in anthropology, the first of her family to graduate with a college degree. She and her husband owned Camouflage in Santa Cruz, and her customers and fellow business owners of downtown Santa Cruz share in the mourning of her loss. A graduate of the sexual education training at San Francisco Sex Information, Shannon loved to help educate and enrich her customers' love lives. Shannon was a voracious reader and belonged to several book clubs. Her favorite reads were fantasy mysteries, and fiction. She was also a talented gardener, and her pride was evident in the beautiful creations she tended in her garden. She loved to create and eat good food, FoodTV being the network of her favorite shows. She was a strong environmentalist and a believer in the local food movement, always trying to buy her food from nearby sources. She is survived by her husband, Ken Vinson of Santa Cruz her mother Kathleen Haner of Nevada, her brother, Shaun Collins of Colorado, and her two loving cats, Boba Fett and Conan. The memorial gathering will take place on June 9, at 2 pm at the Duck Pond in San Lorenzo Park, Downtown Santa Cruz. Please visit www.rememberingshannon.com for details of the service.