Former mayor Shirley Dettloff dies at 89
by: Jerry Person
Published: April 25, 2024
Shirley and Bob Dettloff at a Senior event at the pier
HUNTINGTON BEACH...If there was one person who not only knew the insides of Huntington Beach politics, attended more city events and wasn't afraid step in when problems arose, that person was Shirley Dettloff.
On Tuesday, April 23, 2024 Dettloff died at age 89.
Dettloff had sat on so many community commissions, committees, boards, and was on our City Council and was a Mayor of our city during her many years of service to our city and its residents. Dettloff served on the City Council from 1994 to 2000 and served as Mayor in 1998.
While on council and off , Dettloff was not afraid to speak out at public meetings when she believed a wrong is being committed including what is happening in today's city council.
One of her first duties as mayor was to light the "snowflake lights" on the Huntington Beach pier at the Light a Light of Love event on November 29, 1998.
In the 1970s she became active in saving the Bolsa Chica wetlands and was a founding member of the nonprofit Amigos de Bolsa Chica.
Over the years she was active in the Shipley Nature Center, Senior Center, local Boys & Girls Club, the Huntington Beach Historical Society, served on the California Coastal Commission.
Dettloff chaired the Huntington Beach Planning Commission, also chaired the Orange County Harbors, Beaches, and Parks Commission and was a director of the Orange County Sanitation District.
Dettloff is survived by her husband of 68 years, Bob. She was the mother of three children, Rob Dettloff, Sue Bohannan and Julie Snider, and a grandmother of Anna Bohannan. No memorial plans have been announced as yet.
May your spirit and deeds guide our city into the future.
Below are just a very few events that Shirley Dettloff attended over the years:
Shirley with Ralph Bauer
Dettloff with Huell Howser in Huntington Beach Central Park
Dettloff with former HB mayor Norma Gibbs
Shirley Dettloff at Shipley Nature Center
Shirley Dettloff speaks to two visitors at an event
Former HB mayors Barbara Delgleize and Shirley Dettloff
Dettloff with Tom Livengood at a Shipley Nature event
Father Mondor rehearses his lines while former Mayor Shirley Dettloff looks on
Photos:JerryPerson