May Harrison, a longtime Willow Glen resident, died of pneumonia on Jan. 14. She was 90.

Harrison was born and raised in Baltimore, Md., where her sister, Isabelle Gunzelman, and her half-brother, John Roth Jr., still live. Harrison's mother died when she was 5, leaving her to help her father and aunt with the cooking, sewing and caring for her younger sister. After high school, Harrison became a legal secretary. She had a lifelong love for the English language and its etymology, and was quick to pull out a dictionary to discuss a word.

Harrison joined the women's Marine Corps in World War II and became a drill instructor. She was stationed in San Francisco, where she met her husband, Bill Harrison, a doctor, while May Harrison was on leave in Carmel. She was having dinner with a "leatherneck" girlfriend when all the lights in the restaurant went out. The women sat in the lobby waiting for lights to come back on, chatting with an elderly man wearing an old-fashioned hearing horn in his ear. He spoke rather loudly to Harrison saying, "You shouldn't be sitting here with me; you and your friend should be sitting over there with those two young men." He pointed to Harrison's future husband and the other man.

After the two married, her husband sailed off to the Pacific. By then, Harrison was expecting their first child. Harrison stayed in San Francisco with her husband's parents. When her husband returned from the war, the couple moved to San Jose, where they raised four children: Richard, Kathleen, William and Sharon.

The family made their home in Willow Glen. Harrison was an active, stay-at-home mom who enjoyed volunteering at the San Jose Museum of Art and other community programs. She was a glass artist for many years and enjoyed music, including the symphony and musical theater in San Francisco. She also enjoyed swimming with her children and cooking recipes from Sunset magazine. Her children remember her as an excellent cook who entertained family and friends over a good dinner that was served with humorous stories and anecdotes.

Her son, Rick, and her husband died previously. In addition to her siblings and three remaining children, Harrison is survived by five grandchildren--Chris, Kyra, Zach, Libby and Devin--and great-grandchildren Andrew, Conner, Kyle and Kaitlyn.

Services have been held.