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Pamela Nichols
May 17, 1945 - May 7, 2009
Two dates dominate our sojourn on earth -the day we are born and the day we die, but it is all the time in between that really matters, and the years that Pam Nichols lived mattered a whole lot. Here is what she had to say not long ago: “Brain cancer would not have been my chosen way to die, but I am not afraid of dying. I am Scandinavian, a realist, and life doesn’t happen the way it should. Life happens the way it happens, sometimes with reasons and sometimes without reasons, but that’s the way it is.”
Pam approached the end of her life with full knowledge of what was coming and she was a champ; absolutely amazing. She did not retreat into herself, she embraced memories of a successful life and career, she shared her hours with people who loved her (and the dogs and cats) and relived fun times with laughter and tears. She drank champagne and she abandoned decades of watching her weight. She held on to her style, her humor and her dignity. She talked about what was really important: “Charlie is my greatest gift. He made things happen to go with my aspirations, making my life what it is. The kids and grandkids bring such unbridled joy to our lives, and my sister, Nancy, and the rest of my family.”
She lived a life of ever-expanding horizons. Travel, sailing, taking on daunting challenges like sky-diving, white-water kayaking, and bungee-jumping, climbing through jungles, and giving an incredible amount of her time and talent to volunteerism. She made new friends and kept the old; she was devoted and faithful to all of them. She was, on the one hand, a tough-minded realist, and on the other a tender romantic, a lover of animals, flowers, and all things beautiful.
In high school Pam joined the Civil Air Patrol and later became a cadet commander as well as the Minnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol Queen. She was totally self-supporting in college, working as many as three jobs at a time. Pam earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management and held positions as a director of corporate staff personnel and the vice president of human resources at ADC Telecommunications. In 1997, the University of Minnesota honored Pam with an Outstanding Achievement Award, supported by colleagues who praised her dedication. One wrote, “Ms. Nichols truly is a unique person, one who has learned how to balance professional success with extraordinary community involvement.”
We on the island benefited from the best of both of those sides of her. When Pam and her husband, Charlie Bodenstab, retired to San Juan Island, Pam began a new phase of volunteer work. She contributed immeasurably to the San Juan Community Theatre as board president and to the successful campaign to build the Performing Arts Resource Center. Subsequent leadership in the fledgling Visual Arts Museum was a source of well-deserved pride. Pam loved the island. She adored Charlie, her life with him, and all their family, friends, and pets. She was well and truly loved in return.
Pamela leaves us with wonderful memories of her full and giving life. We’ll miss her.
It was Pamela’s wish that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the San Juan Community Theatre or the Islands Museum of Art and Sculpture Park.
A celebration of Pamela Nichols’ life will be held at the San Juan Community Theatre on Sunday, May 17th at 2:00 p.m.
Margaret Joan Brown
Aug. 19, 1941 - July 21, 2009
Maggie, age 68, passed away peacefully at home on July 21, 2009 from cancer. She was surrounded by her loving family. A private graveside service is scheduled for Sunday Aug. 2 at Valley Cemetery, followed by a Celebration of Life at 2:30 p.m. in the San Juan Island Yacht Club.
She was born on Aug. 19, 1941 to Joe and Anna Barrett in Manhattan, Kan., the third of eight children. She also had a half sibling.
She met the love of her life, her husband Brian, at Kayak Point Resort in Stanwood, which was being run by her parents. They were married and started their family in Marysville, and lived for several years in Olympia before settling in Friday Harbor in 1976. Maggie and Brian celebrated 49 wonderful years together on July 14.
Her greatest joy in life was her family. Maggie and Brian raised three children and were thrilled with the arrival (finally) of six terrific grandchildren. Their children and families are: son Gene and his wife Debbie, with their daughter, Meg, of Vail, Ariz.; daughter Theresa Chevalier and her husband, Mitchell, with their sons Sean and Lucas, of Friday Harbor; and son Daniel and his wife, Leslie, with their daughters Isabella and Olivia and son Julian, also of Friday Harbor.
Maggie enjoyed her time working at San Juan County Bank and at various retail stores in town. She was active in her community, which she cherished. She volunteered at the Blood Bank and with the Booster Club, and was instrumental in the formation of the Purple and Gold Club in 1978. She was always an avid supporter of her children's and grandchildren's school activities.
Maggie's hobbies and activities included drawing, knitting, dancing, swimming, traveling and boating. Maggie touched many lives with her warmth, generosity, kindness and easy smile.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Maggie's honor to:
San Juan EMS
P.O. Box 1518
Friday Harbor 98250
or
San Juan Eagles
P.O. Box 2299
Friday Harbor 98250.
Nancy Adkins
April 28, 1935 - July 15, 2009
Nancy Adkins, 74, passed away at her home in Anacortes July 15, 2009 surrounded by her loving family. Though she was diagnosed with melanoma in 2001, Nancy never let that slow her down. As recently as 2008, she drove across the country visiting friends and family as far away as Tennessee. She will always be remembered as a unique woman with a fascination and fervor for life.
Nancy was born April 28, 1935, to Ingvald “Tommy” and Jean (Cushman) Bergeson in Everett, Wash. She grew up with her brothers, Neil and Ted, and sister and best friend, Kay, in Marysville. From a young age, Nancy possessed a vivid imagination and passion for learning, beginning her creative endeavors with classical violin and piano.
After graduating from Marysville High School in 1952, she attended Everett Junior College where she was very active in the college newspaper. Her love of the written word inspired her to pursue a teaching degree in English at Western Washington University, where she met Chuck Roberson. The two married in 1956 and went on to have seven children, living in Bellingham, Mount Vernon and Bothell, where Nancy taught in the public schools. The couple settled in Friday Harbor in 1968.
Nancy taught for a short time at Friday Harbor High School, before she and Chuck bought Scribner’s Market and renamed it Roberson’s Market, a family operation. They also purchased the Lower Tavern, which became Charlie’s -a place full of music, pizza and good times. Family adventures included trips to Disneyland and Mexico, and spontaneous visits to Eastern Washington. Nancy also worked for a time at the Public Health Department and the Islands Convalescent Center.
In 1976 Nancy married George Adkins and moved with her brood to George’s 40-acre farm on Beaverton Valley Road, adding farmer, gardener and all-around outdoors woman to her resume. She embraced farm life, learning many things about love and life from George. In return, she gave him a sense of family, and they soon reunited with George’s first cousin Colleen and her family from Tennessee.
In 1977, Nancy returned to teaching at FHHS where she made lifelong friends and inspired countless students to strive for the creative potential she believed all possessed. Her love of Shakespeare led her to study in England and Ashland, Ore. Nancy took a sabbatical to return to Western Washington University and after an intense year of study and teaching Freshman English, earned a masters degree in creative writing in 1990. She joined George in retirement shortly thereafter.
For many summers, Nancy and George took cross-country camping trips to Tennessee, first with the kids and dogs, then with Nancy’s sister Kay and George’s cousin Colleen, and later just the two of them. One year they even ventured north in a family caravan to Alaska. After George passed away in 2002, Nancy continued traveling to see family, and taking trips with some of her dearest friends from Vancouver Island to the Oregon Coast. Later, she voyaged solo across the country, visiting family, relatives and friends from the Okanagon to Chicago and Tennessee, and many points between.
Nancy had a deep love for life, family and friendship. She enjoyed the arts, nature and lively discussions, was an avid reader and writer, and joyfully discovered new things to interest her and others. She loved her home in Anacortes, where she lived for the past 3½ years. She will be deeply missed as a mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, friend and teacher.
Nancy was predeceased by her parents Tommy and Jean Bergeson, sister Kay Halldin, and second husband George Adkins. She is survived by her brothers Neil (Bekki) Bergeson and Ted (Marilyn) Bergeson, and brother-in-law Mel Halldin; her first husband Chuck Roberson; her seven children Kim Lanz of Juneau, Alaska; Kerri Roberson, John Roberson, and Jeff (Tracy) Roberson, all of Friday Harbor; Lisa (Greg) Beckt of Stanwood; Lola (Mike) Gallagher of Ellensburg; Andy (Susanna) Roberson of Naperville, Illinois; fifteen grandchildren; four great grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
An outdoor potluck celebration of Nancy’s life will be held Saturday, Aug. 22 from 1-4 p.m. at 1174 Beaverton Valley Road in Friday Harbor, Wash. Barbecued salmon and beverages will be provided; please dress casually for the weather and bring a dish and your memories to share. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the San Juan Island Library (www.sjlib.org), American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org), or a cause close to your heart.
Nourdine H. Jensen
September 17, 1914 - October 11, 2009
Nourdine H. Jensen, age 95, passed away peacefully with family by his side on October 11, 2009. He was at Island Hospital in Anacortes, WA after fighting a brief illness. Nourdine was born September 17, 1914 in the home his father built in Friday Harbor, Washington. Born to Albert & Julia Jane (Frits) Jensen, Nourdine lived in Friday Harbor about 83 of his 95 years.
After graduating from Friday Harbor High School, Nourdine attended the University of Washington and worked as an auto mechanic in Seattle. In 1938 he married Vera Smethurst of Seattle before he returned home to help his father with the family business, Albert Jensen & Sons Shipyard. Soon after coming home, he served in World War II as a Chief Motor Machinist’s Mate in the South Pacific.
In 1946 Nourdine and Vera settled permanently in Friday Harbor. Nord eventually took over operations at the Shipyard where he worked until the day he died. He designed and/or built over 150 boats in his tenure at the yard while at the same time serving his community in capacities such as: first Friday Harbor Port Commission from 1950-1973, on the Friday Harbor Town Council from 1953-1959, On the OPALCO board from 1965-1969 and 1975-2008, and as a school board member, a volunteer firefighter, Member of the Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church, Charter Member of the San Juan Island Yacht Club and Member of the San Juan Masonic Lodge for over 60 years.
Nourdine is preceded in death by his wife, Vera (Smethurst) Jensen, and his brother Benjamin Frits Jensen. Nourdine is survived by his sister Mary Ellen (Jensen) Gunderson, daughter Jeri Lynn Ahrenius (Michael), grandchildren: Alisa Marie (Felthous) Schoultz (Scott), Jensen Charles Ahrenius, David Benjamin Ahrenius and great granddaughter, Vera Jane Schoultz.
Nourdine believed in keeping electricity affordable for everyone. Donations made in Nourdine’s name can be directed to OPALCO’s Project PAL (1034 Guard St., Friday Harbor, WA 98250), or any local charity of your choice.
To share memories of or tributes to Nourdine Jensen visit www.evanschapel.com.
Mary Elizabeth Keith
May 5, 1945 - September 26, 2009
Mary Elizabeth Keith, 64, passed away on September 26, 2009, in Bellingham, Washington. Mary was born May 5, 1945, in Twin Falls, Idaho to Charles and Thelma Nanz.
After graduating from Twin Falls High School, Mary attended Boise Junior College, now known as Boise State University. She married Doren Keith and they had a son named David. After living in Twin Falls and Seattle for a several years, they moved to San Juan Island in 1978. Mary worked at the San Juan County Assessor's Office and later for the Town of Friday Harbor.
Mary enjoyed participating in the San Juan Community Theatre. Whether as an actress, stagehand, or running lights she enjoyed every moment and the wonderful friendships that developed. She also enjoyed singing with the San Juan Singers.
In recent years, she began water coloring and participating with other artists at the Senior Citizens Center. Mary was a long time, faithful member of the Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church. She was the newsletter editor and served the Lord in many ways in the life of the congregation. She is survived by her son, David Keith of Spokane, WA, and her sister, Gerry Draper, in Nampa, ID.
All will miss Mary’s tender heart and her love for her friends, family, and life.
A memorial service was held Tuesday, September 29, at the Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church. Memorials may be sent to the church In Memory of Mary Keith.
Patricia Josephine (McHugh) Branstetter
August 31, 1921 - September 8, 2009
Patricia Josephine (McHugh) Branstetter died at home in Friday Harbor on September 8, 2009, surrounded by the love of her four children. She was 88 years old. Patricia, known to her family and close friends as Tricia, was born in Seattle on August 31, 1921. Her parents were Frank and Marion (Manca) McHugh.
Patricia’s grandfather, Patrick McHugh owned the P.J. McHugh Paving and Construction Co. and was selected to construct the first paved section of Snoqualmie Pass. He also paved many of the city’s earliest streets including a portion of the Denny Hill re-grade, Montlake Boulevard and Madison Avenue. Her father continued in the family business, completing the paving of Snoqualmie Pass in the middle of the 1930’s. Her mother was the daughter of restaurateur, Victor Manca, who owned the Seattle landmark, Manca’s Café, which operated in the city’s business district from 1898 until the late 1950’s.
Patricia attended the University of Washington and was a member of the Alpha Phi sorority. During WWII, she met the great love of her life, Richard “Dick” Branstetter, also of Seattle, and married him in 1944. Together they had four children and numerous dogs. She was a dedicated wife and mother and took great pride in her work as a homemaker.
Tricia loved life and lived it with spirited vigor, a sense of adventure and elegance. She was an avid bridge player, a master gardener, a dedicated volunteer, an expert crossword puzzler (Sunday NY Times), a true movie buff, a music lover, a voracious reader and a fabulous cook. She possessed a sharp, inquisitive mind and was commonly heard to say, “Let’s look it up” if an answer to a question was not readily available. She was forthright in her opinions and truly curious about the opinions and ideas of others. She was a unique individual, possessed of style, taste and a surprisingly earthy sense of humor. Her favorite toast, coined in the last months of her life, was a hearty, “Carry on!”
She is survived by her sister, Sharon Knowles; and her children Michael Branstetter, Marion Melville (Doug Bison), Chuck (Julie) Branstetter and Manca (Kjell) Valum; nine grand children, two great-grandchildren; and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; her siblings Frank McHugh, Helen Olcott, Jane McHugh, Patrick McHugh; and her husband.
A celebration of her life will be held at 11:00 on October 17, 2009 at the San Juan Island Yacht Club. Lunch will be served and memories shared. Memorials may be made to Skagit Hospice and Hospice San Juan. You may share your thoughts and memories in the online guest book for Patricia at www.molesfuneralhome.com
Inge Elly Eiriksson Schepler Johnson
May 13, 1920 - August 31, 2009
Inge Elly Johnson was born in Reykjavik Iceland on May 13, 1920 to Halldor and Elly Schepler Eiriksson. She grew up skiing, horseback riding and adventuring with her family with whom she was very close.
Inge moved to Urbana Illinois in the fall of 1942 to attend the University of Illinois. She came by convoy from Iceland to New York due to WWII. Normally she would have been educated in Europe but her father felt she would be safer in the United States.
She travelled to Ballard to spend the 1945 Christmas holidays with Jakobina Johnson’s family. Close family friends. John Leo Johnson had been discharged from the Army Air Corp in November 1945 and had made it back to Ballard and stopped by Jakobina’s for his third Christmas dinner that night (having grown up with her sons) and met a beautiful young woman from Iceland. They fell in love and were engaged in a week.
Inge went back to Urbana and with six months left to graduate, packed up her things and went back to John. They were married March 1, 1946 and were married for over 60 years. As Mom said when Dad passed, “He was a good man and a good man is hard to find. We had many good years together”. They loved and respected each other always.
John and Inge started “Fortune Productions” on Ballard Avenue May 1, 1959 and worked side by side until retiring in 1994 enjoying the community and friendships on Ballard Avenue.
They built their home at 8018 31st Avenue NW in Ballard in 1956 and enjoyed 50 years there raising their family. John & Inge helped start the Icelandic Club of Greater Seattle in 1964. They were very involved in the Icelandic community and received an honor from the Icelandic Club January 25, 2007. Inge spent many hours volunteering at the Nordic Heritage Museum. Something she enjoyed very much.
John & Inge enjoyed raising their family, summering at their cabin on Lake Whatcom, camping trips around the northwest with the family and later together in their camper van even venturing up the Al-Can Highway to Alaska in 1988. The family spent time boating and camping in the San Juan Islands during the 60’s and 70s and in later years John & Inge were frequent visitors to San Juan Island visiting their daughter and grandson and the friends they had here.
She will be remembered as a very sweet, loving woman who enjoyed her family and was devoted to her children and grandchildren. She was preceded in death by two sons, Paul Stephan Johnson and Eric Thor Johnson and her beloved husband John.
She leaves behind her son and daughter-in-law Robert Carl and Shauna Lee Johnson of Ballard, her daughter Ellen Louise Johnson of Friday Harbor, WA, her son Kurt Daniel Johnson of Chelan, WA, her granddaughter Lauren Kristen Johnson of Ballard, grandsons Jacob Robert Johnson of Ballard and John Daniel Johnson of Friday Harbor, her sister Elsa Gudjonsson and brother Carl Eiriksson of Reykjavik, Iceland.
We miss her very much but know that she is with Dad and they are dancing together again. A memorial will be held at the Islands Convalescent Center in Friday Harbor on Saturday September 12th from 2 to 4 pm and again in Seattle at the Nordic Heritage Museum in Ballard on Saturday, September 19th between 2 and 6 pm.
Virginia Elizabeth Mccormick
March 3, 1929 - December 14, 2009
A resident of San Juan Island since 1989, Virginia died on December 14, 2009 at Islands Convalescent Center after a brief battle with cancer. A memorial service will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, December 19, at Saint David’s Episcopal Church.
After surviving a three-car crash at age 19, Virginia dropped out of Occidental College to begin a teaching career on an emergency credential. She went to U.C.L. A. and got her B.A. from the University of Redlands. Over her forty years of teaching, she taught all the elementary grades, but concentrated on first grade and kindergarten.
Her last ten years she team-taught as a bilingual Spanish teacher in a neighborhood with many ESL students. From that experience, she and her teaching partner developed a series of 32 books of lesson plans, teaching the entire kindergarten curriculum through art lessons The series proved to be very effective, and spread throughout all 50 states and many foreign countries. In 2005 she was invited to Dubai to workshop with teachers from 70 schools in the Middle and Far East.
Along the way she was always full of energy and fun. She raised six children. After hearing a Pete Seeger concert, she taught herself banjo and guitar. She studied wheel pottery under Robert Westevelt, and with two other women opened a small art gallery. She studied harmony under Russell Baldwin and wrote two original compositions.
After moving to Friday Harbor in 1989, Virginia came under the spell of Martha Gubelman. From then on she played keyboard for many musical productions. Virginia was fortunate to have a spiritual home at St. David’s Episcopal Church, where she worked with many choir members and soloists to enrich the services.
Virginia is survived by her husband Jim; her brother Charlie of Riverside, CA; her son Jimbo of Friday Harbor; her daughters Kristen and Maria of Santa Rosa, CA; her sons Joseph and Peter of Kauai; and her son Tom of Twisp, WA.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations may be made to The American Cancer Society or to the Saint David’s Church Building Fund.
Nanette Robinson Weissinger
1919 - 2009
Nanette Robinson Weissinger died Friday, December 11, at the Island Convalescent Center in Friday Harbor, WA, after a short and unexpected hospitalization. She was 90 years old. She had lived in Friday Harbor for the past ten years.
She was born Nanette Pray Robinson in 1919 in Valcour, New York, the daughter of Harry and Lillian Robinson. Her father, a medical student in Burlington VT, died in the Great Flu Epidemic of 1918, a few months before she was born. She was schooled in a one-room school house in Peru NY, then at Plattsburgh (NY) High School, and attended St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, where she washed dishes for 25 cents an hour to support her studies.
In 1939 she married Robert J Weissinger of Orlando, FL. He was a master welder and steamfitter. They lived in Plattsburgh, NY for most of their 30 year marriage. They raised three children: Roger, Julie and William. She was a fierce advocate for her children's higher education; all three hold advanced degrees.
Nanette received a bachelor's degree in Psychology at State University of New York at Plattsburgh in 1969. She studied therapeutic massage and received a Doctoral degree in Naprapathic Medicine from the Chicago National College of Naprapathy. From 1989 to 1999 she lived in Boston near the Common and attended classes at the Massachusetts College of Art. As an artist she enjoyed considerable proficiency with oils and watercolors, as well as sculpture and pottery.
In 1999 she moved to Friday Harbor, WA, where her son William practices law, and she became a regular at the Friday Harbor Senior Center lunches. She learned to use a computer and explored the internet, reading the news in several languages. She had a life-long enthusiasm for the French language, the civil rights of minorities and the Metropolitan Opera, and became an admirer of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society of Friday Harbor and the politician Dennis Kucinich.
She is survived by her son Roger Weissinger-Baylon and his wife Anne of Menlo Park, CA and Paris, France, by her daughter Julie W Jaffe and husband Miles of Chilmark, MA and Queenstown NZ, and by her son William J. Weissinger and his wife Rudi of Friday Harbor, WA. She is survived also by three grandchildren, David Robinson Simon, Jeremy Max Simon and Caroline Weissinger-Baylon.
In lieu of flowers, donations in her name may be made to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society or to the political campaigns of Dennis Kucinich, D OH. Remains will be cremated.
Amanda Cartmill Cruz
September 7, 1976 - November 12, 2009
Amanda Cartmill Cruz passed into her heavenly father’s hands unexpectedly on November 12 at her home. She was 33.
Born at Harrison Memorial Hospital in Bremerton, Washington, on September 7, 1976, she is the only daughter of Edward and Catherine Cartmill, now residents of La Conner, Washington. Amanda graduated from South Kitsap High School in 1995. She completed a health and human services program at Skagit Valley Community College in 1998. Amanda’s wonderful smile and cheerful personality always made those around her feel loved. She has always been the love of her family and will be greatly missed.
After moving to Friday Harbor in 2001, Amanda met Ronald Cruz. In August 2007 they were married at Pelindaba Lavendar Farm on San Juan Island with her three children present: son Coleton Cartmill, son Kaden Perez and daughter Jaida Cruz. Their home and her heart were always open to Ron’s children and grandchildren.
She was employed as nurse assistants coordinator and staff resource coordinator at Islands Convalescent Center in Friday Harbor, Washington. She took great pride in her job and was greatly loved by all residents, staff and their families.
Amanda was preceded in death by her paternal grandparents Eddie and JoAnn Cartmill. She is survived by her parents, husband and children; brothers Brennan and Ross Cartmill; stepdaughter Camille Cruz (William Blackmon); stepson Ronald Cruz, Jr. (Amanda). She was a beloved second mother to Ron’s grandchildren Willie, Kimmy, Teo and Mia Blackmon, and Elizabeth, Rachelle and Sara Cruz.
A memorial service will be held on November 21, 2009 at 1:00p.m. at Islands Community Church, 127-A Gilbert Lane, off San Juan Valley Road in Friday Harbor.
In lieu of flowers, an account has been set up at Wells Fargo Bank to help the family financially after this sudden loss.
