Elizabeth Paul Hunt Hook
OBITUARY
Elizabeth (Liz) Paul Hunt Hook, 89, passed peacefully and surrounded by family on Monday, April 13 after a short illness. Born in 1936 to Leslie and Mary Paul, she was a lifetime resident of Oakland, California. Her brothers William and James Paul preceded her in death.
She graduated from Oakland High School in 1954 and the University of California, Berkeley, in 1958, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in art. She was a member of the women’s fencing team and the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority.
After graduating she worked as an interior decorator with Stone Pierce in Berkeley. During this time, she met David Hunt, whom she married in the spring of 1960. They lived in Oakland until 1966 and then relocated to Piedmont. They had two children, Nathan and Sarah, at which time she left the working world and became a homemaker.
Elizabeth was generous with her time and volunteered with many organizations, including the Junior Center of Arts and Science and Piedmont Schools’ libraries. She was a docent at the Oakland Museum of California in the Natural Science department, as well as a volunteer in the art rental gallery. Concerned about the environment, she began writing to her legislators at age 12 and never stopped. This led to her being a longtime volunteer at the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden and a member of the Hillside Gardeners of Montclair, where she managed the scholarship program and grew plants for their sales. Her love of gardening extended to Lakeside Park, where she helped maintain the Sensory Garden.
Elizabeth was a lifelong member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church where she sang in the choir as a child under her mother’s direction, and as an adult. She was recently named the oldest living member of the church, and three years ago was celebrated at the Bishop’s Ranch 75th anniversary as one of its original campers from 1947. She enjoyed maintaining the church garden, was senior warden twice and was the church historian and archivist. At age 82 she authored the church’s 150th anniversary book along with Robert Knapp. She loved her church life and all of the wonderful, lifelong friends she made.
Her love of adventure and travel started with a post-graduate cross-country trip with her best friends Jinny and Marty and continued throughout the years with family and many tours to France, England, Spain, Turkey, Iceland, Scotland, Venezuela, Costa Rica, The Grand Tortugas, Mexico, Samoa and Hawaii. Several of these trips centered on her passion for birding and geology. Her love of journaling has left our family with wonderful travel logs and daily journals. She was also a voracious reader with an endless curiosity for literature, the natural world and theology.
She is survived by her son Nathan Hunt of Oakland and daughter Sarah Wright (Dave) of West Linn, Oregon. She was blessed with four grandsons, David (Kim) and William Hunt, and Brett and Craig Wright, whom she adored and who adored her immensely. She was preceded in death by husbands David Hunt (30 yrs) and Stewart Hook (20 yrs). She was an amazing mother and role model for us all.
A service will be held Saturday, June 20, 2026, at 11 a.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 114 Montecito Ave., Oakland, CA 94610. A reception will follow in the Parish Hall.
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In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to:
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church – https://stpaulsoakland.breezechms.com/give/online
University of California Botanical Garden – University of California Botanical Garden