Jody

Ayars

Jody, born Helyn Janet Ayars on October 5th, 1939 in Swedesboro, New Jersey, passed away peacefully at her home in Hollister, California on July 15th, 2023, at 83 years of age. Jody is survived by her wife, Diana; three children, Robin, Nathan, and Jessica; four grandchildren, Samantha, Abigail, Layla, and Rosie, and a large community of friends cultivated over a rich and full lifetime.

Jody and her older brother Oliver Kent Ayars were raised in the South Jersey township of Hancock's Bridge by parents Oliver F. and Helen (née Demaris) Ayars. The Ayars and Demaris families have deep ties to the Deleware Valley, dating from Quaker colonial settler roots, and including such notable persons as John Hart, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and John Bartram, founding member of the American Philosophical Society, who was renowned as an explorer, naturalist, horticulturist, and regarded as America's first Botanist.

Jody embodied this pioneering spirit from a young age and throughout her lifetime. From childhood, Jody eschewed the name Helyn as she swam, boated, fished, explored, and trapped muskrats in the tidally influenced muddy waters of Lower Alloways Creek. A lifelong reader and a favorite source of book recommendations to those around her, Jody received her BA in English from Douglass College in 1961. It was there where she met her first husband, Dr. David L. Fried, who was completing his PhD at Rutgers University at the time.

Shortly after their marriage, Jody and David moved from New Jersey to southern California, where they made their home and raised their three children, Robin Fried, Nathan Fried, and Jessica Fried Walker. Jody spent much of her time in southern California in the outdoors; trail riding horses, hiking the local mountains, and venturing out beyond, to the deserts and rivers of the American Southwest to rockhound and raft. Whilst living in Yorba Linda, Jody rekindled her passion and heritage in horticulture. In the 1970s, Jody parlayed this passion into establishing her ranch in Fallbrook, where she raised crops of avocados and specialty flowers, over time establishing the businesses 'Jody's Grove Management' and 'Country Ayars Flowers'.

Jody's family continued to expand, and in the late 1990s she moved north, to Hollister, California, to be close to her growing number of grandbabies, Samantha, Abigail, Layla, and Rosie. Jody deeply resonated with the people and the land of Hollister, which is where she met her wife and lifelong partner, a Hollister local named Diana Garcia. Also in Hollister, she and Jessica started a quaint shop selling antiques and plants from a historic downtown building, naming their venture 'The Old Flower Mill'.  Between numerous offsite adventures, Di and Jody set about restoring five tired but magical acres on the edge of Hollister, filling the land with plant and animal life, creating a haven for their many dear friends among the trees and flowers.

Jody never stopped adventuring, favoring the neighboring crick (sic) which flowed down from the Diablo Range, and voyaging ever further in the search of new rocks and the occasional rattler, enjoying the quiet spaces she found on these trips and inspiring all those around her.

Jody herself was inspired by 'The Red Road', a philosophy originating from Native American spiritual teachings, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of all life. This was practiced by Jody not only through a respect for others, but also for oneself and for creation, as well as the abstention from sources of damage to oneself and others.

We remember Jody with love, admiration, and countless (funny) stories. Thank you Jody for your many gifts to us, through the wisdom of a life well lived.