Elinor Osness Obituary (1927

Biography Elinor Doris Johnson was born Sept. 8, 1927 in the Renton Hospital. Her parents were Theckla Agatha Miller and Fletcher Ralph Johnson. Elinor was the second child born to them. Another daughter, Florence May was born stillborn in 1926. Elinor lived on her parents farm until her marriage Nov. 2, 1946 to Ralph Lawrence Osness. Her grandfather Johnson had cleared the 33 1/2 acres which was Fletcher's share of the estate. It was originally settle by her grandparents in March 1889. Elinor attended Kent Elementary, Kent Junior High and Kent High School, graduating in 1945. During Nov. & Dec. 1944, she worked part time in the stationery department of the Seattle Frederick & Nelson. Then she did office work after school for the high school office. During her summer vacation of 1944, she worked for the Kent School District Superintendent's office, as a secretary. During her Senior year she continued working after school in the high school office. In March of 1945, Elinor was asked to come to work at the Kent Post Office doing secretarial and clerical duties. This was part time until her graduation, and then full time until Feb. of 1950. In Feb. 1951, she started to work part time again until Dec. 31st 1965. For part of 1956, she worked in the Personnel Office of the Kent Stokely-Van Camp cannery. Elinor and fellow postal employee Ralph Osness started dating in March 1946. Some of their first dates included roller skating, the Ice Follies, movies and Seattle Rainiers baseball games. They became engaged on June 28, 1946 and were married Nov. 2, 1946 in the Kent First Christian Church. Ralph was a member of the Christian Church, his Mother being a charter member of the Kent congregation. At the time of her wedding, Elinor was a member of the Kent Lutheran Church, having been confirmed there in May 1942. She became a member of Kent FCC in 1948. During the succeeding years, Elinor held the following positions in the church: Deaconess, Financial Secretary, Treasurer, Board Secretary, Building Fund Treasurer & Secretary, Sunday School Teacher, Trustee, Historian, CWF Secretary & Treasurer and Deaconess Emeritus. Elinor was preceded in death by her Father in 1966 and her Mother in 1969. Her 32+ year marriage to Ralph ended with his death of congestive heart failure in 1979. Upon becoming a widow, Elinor's prime concern was raising her pre-teen daughter as a single parent. After this period of time, at the age of 60, she joined Olsten Temporary Services. She worked for Weyerhauser, Panasonic and then for the next 4 years was a valued member of Don R. Kirkman, Architect. Elinor had a ruptured brain aneurysm in Dec. of 1989, a mild heart attack in 1991 and breast cancer in 1996. Despite these ailments, she continued to be an active member of her church, a doting grandmother, enjoyed cooking and sewing, and used her love and knowledge of Kent, as a docent at the Kent Historical Museum. In 2010, at the annual Kent Old-Timers reunion, she was honored for her role and contribution to the growth of Kent. In recent years, Elinor slowing became limited in her activities by arthritis, but continued to attend church, the Kent Senior Activity Center for lunch and family birthday and holiday celebrations. She entered the hospital on Nov. 17th of this year suffering from advanced congestive heart failure. After a week, her doctors felt there weren't any further treatments at their disposal, so she was discharged. With the help of hospice care, she was able to go to her daughter's home, where she had been living since a fall in early 2013. After a day at home, she fell into an unconscious state, where she remain for another 4 days until her passing on Monday, Dec. 1st. It was a blessing that she was able to spend her last week at home surrounded by her family. Elinor is survived by sons Ralph and James, daughter Cheryl Lopez (Mark), grandchildren Sarah, Anna, Jacob, Julie and Alex, and great-grandchildren Lily and Ludo. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, December 20th, 2:00 p.m. at the Kent First Christian Church, 11717 SE 240th St, Kent, WA. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Elinor J. Osness Memorial Fund, in care of the Kent First Christian Church.