Juliette Bustillo Bartlett
Juliette Bustillo Bartlett, 90, passed away peacefully in her Encinitas home she shared with her daughter Jennifer Bartlett Zelles, son-in-law Craig Zelles and granddaughter Catalina Zelles on August 25, 2023. She was born in Honduras in 1933, one of 4 daughters to Hector and Blanca. She left to attend college at Marquette University in Wisconsin where she embraced the cold winters and majored in literature. After graduation she made her way to New York City and worked for RKO Radio Pictures, one of the Big Five Studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. In New York she met William R. Bartlett, 11 years her senior, a Marine who fought in WWII, a graduate of Colorado School of Mines and Columbia, and who then worked for Aramco, the Arabian American Oil Company. After a whirlwind romance and marriage, they were transferred to Saudi Arabia and thus began their adventuresome 35 years of international living and world travel. They had 3 daughters Karen, Liza and Jennifer, who accompanied them on their many many trips to exotic locations. Juliette was widowed in 2007, the same year she was to become a grandmother for the first and only time. She left Reno, where she and Bill had retired, and relocated to California to be near daughter Jennifer, husband Craig and to her new granddaughter, Catalina. In 2016 she, Jennifer, Craig and Catalina moved to Encinitas to live under one roof. Juliette embraced being Catalina's beloved Nana passing down recipes, sharing family stories including her own, listening to every story told, ever ready to receive or to give a hug.
Juliette is survived by 2 of her sisters Juanita Miller and Blanca Lennon, and by daughters Karen Bartlett, Liza Reavis (Paul), Jennifer Zelles (Craig), and granddaughter Catalina Zelles. Juliette touched each person she met and is lovingly remembered by all. Her graciousness, patience and altruism created a better world here and across the globe.