- Date Of Birth: June 11, 1921
- Date Of Death: March 10, 2016
- State: Idaho
Esther Margaret Ciddio was born June 11, 1921 at Trinidad, Colorado of Italian parents. She grew up and attended school in the coal-mining communities of southern Colorado.
After high school, she went to work as a typist at the county agricultural office in Trinidad. Shortly thereafter, she and her family moved to Denver, Colorado, when the mines closed for World War II. Esther worked as a clerk in Denver throughout the 1940s. Eventually she took a job working as a statistician for the federal government in Seattle, Washington.
Seattle became her new home and the place where she met and married her husband, Nelson J. Austin, in 1961. Nels introduced Esther to the game of golf, which she loved to play, along with enjoying any outdoor activities. She was also an avid card player with a strong competitive streak. Esther cared for Nels until his death in 1999.
Esther did not have children, but cherished her three nieces, the daughters of her sister even sharing a trip to Italy with them. In later years, she moved to Boise, Idaho, to be near them, especially Celeste, whom she selected to care for her. They will always remember her contagious giggle and competitive spirit
Esther passed away on March 10, 2016 surrounded by love. She is preceded in death by her parents Vincie and Victor Ciddio, her siblings Jay A. Ciddio and Marirose I. Laudeman, and her husband. She is survived by her nieces Claudia Druss (Mark), Celeste Killeen (Vaughn) and Irene Laudeman, and great-nephews and nieces, Jared Hallock, Athena Killeen and her children Aiden and Amaya, Garek Druss, and Emilie Druss.
