Antoinette Naufal

was born 1-17-38 in Beirut Lebanon, she was the 2nd youngest of 6 kids. Her parents were Felix & Ada. She was raised speaking French but went to Italian school as a child and by the time she was an adult she became fluent in 5 languages. She often spoke of the beauty of Beirut and having grown up swimming in the Mediterranean. She worked as a ground hostess at Air Italia in her teen years then at the age of 19 she met Robert Naufal from Alexandria, Egypt. They were soon married and at the age of 20 she had her first child, Marlene. Due to the war in Beirut and the opportunities they had heard about in the US, they left in 1962 and moved to Los Angeles. Nina began to learn a new language at that time, English. When they first moved to LA they lived with good friends that had immigrated earlier and then eventually moved into their own place. Nina returned the favor while living in LA, she opened her home to other friends and relatives who were fleeing the war in Beirut. In 1966 while pregnant with her second child, she returned to Beirut for a few months to be with her family when Karine was born. Two years later her third child, Michael was born in Los Angeles and soon after the Naufal family decided to move north to Concord California. It was during the 20 years they lived in Concord on Ravenwood Drive that Nina raised her kids and made some lifelong friendships with many of her neighbors. She had great memories of those years having parties, swimming, playing card games and entertaining everyone around. She loved cooking and her recipes were loved by all. She loved to sing and dance and entertain and had a tremendous sense of humor. She was the life of every party. She also loved happy hour and a good martini.
Her golden years she settled in Roseville, CA but was still known for her spark and made some special new friends. She never lost that spark. Nina was also a woman of strong faith and she was very devout in her Christian beliefs. She was a loving wife, mother, and grandmother. She is survived by her youngest brother Marcel Esseili, her daughters Marlene & Karine, her son Michael, son-in-law Jay, her grandkids Nicholas & Julianna whom she adored, her good friend Al Koop along with numerous relatives and friends who loved her dearly. Nina died March 1, 2014.

A Celebration of her life will be held on June 28th with details to follow.