"Whenever I think of Ethie I just think of this big smile that she always had," said close friend Anne Speake.
Manuel Cunha added: "Just a great gal. Always had a smile."
Stanislaus Sheriff Adam Christianson said: "Her smile and her vibrant presence in the community."
Family friends of Ethie Radanovich all agree there is a noticeable void in Central California.
"Everybody loved her. Everybody loved her. We went to their wedding and I never dreamed that someday we would be attending a memorial for her," said Speake.
Representative David Dreier said: "They're going to be missing her infectious laugh and her enthusiasm, her can-do spirit."
Ethie is the late wife of Congressman George Radanovich.
The couple was married in '96 after a more than 10 year courtship.
A few days into February this 50-year old wife and mother lost her 3-year battle with ovarian cancer.
Sheriff Christianson said: "The congressman we've always appreciated what he's stood for with respect to public safety and just not having her there is going to be a loss for everyone."
It's not what's missing now that friends said they'll be thinking of it's what Ethie did that will keep her legacy alive.
Cunha said: "A great friend of business. Not just agriculture, but business. The things that she did and worked on. The projects that she worked on was for California."
Dreier added: "No one has ever cared more to ensure that everyone around her was having fun than Ethie Radanovich."
Along with her husband, Ethie also leaves behind an 11-year old son.
Close friends said now that Congressman Radanovich is not seeking reelection he will be focusing all of his attention on his son.
