Gwendolyn Hazel Page was born August 27, 1926 in West Rutland, Vermont. She was the daughter of Don Page and Hazel Shepardson. She was the middle of three children, joining older brother Don and later becoming big sister to Edith.
The many family moves, along with being home-schooled by their mother, resulted in Mom being very close to both Don and Edi. Mom graduated from Girls Polytechnical High School in Portland, OR and was awarded a scholarship to Reed College. While she did not attend college, she never lost her love of learning. She enjoyed history and was proud to be a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
It was while she was working at Montgomery Ward that she met Maxine Raney who became her life-long friend. Maxine was instrumental in Mom’s decision to accept Jesus Christ as her Savior.
With a group of her girlfriends Mom attended a Youth Banquet at Jennings Lodge Church Camp where she met Dad. It was love at first sight for both of them. While Dad made many trips to Portland to visit her, Mom’s first trip to Yakima was during the fall harvest time. She loved the Yakima Valley and fall became her favorite season of the year.
Mom and Dad married on December 15, 1946 and settled into their first home on Summitview Avenue. It was there that they raised their family: Gordon, LeAnne, Kay, Phil and Stan. Mom was always actively involved in the family orchard and warehouse. She “smudged,” picked fruit, packed apples, and maintained the books. After retirement she had several short-term jobs, but her favorite was giving school tours at Top Foods in Union Gap.
Mom and Dad loved their children, but grandchildren were even more special to them. Their door was always open whether for a short visit or several days. The grandkids always knew where to find the cookie jar. Mom and Dad took the time to make sure that each of the grandchildren had special time with them, and also loved it when they could have a large group of grandkids over night without parents. Mom and Dad were not only great examples of how to be good parents, but they also set a standard for being good grandparents.
Mom was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings, Don Page Jr. and Edith (Page) Stevens, as well as her husband, Elroy, her sons, Gordon, Phil, and Stan, one grandson, Bradley, her parents-in-law and her brother-in-law Delbert Keller.
She is survived by her two daughters, LeAnne (Ron) Koliha and Kay (Mike) Hadley, daughter-in-law Elaine (Phil) Keller, Carla (Stan) Harrington, grandchildren Kyle (Kiernan) Keller, Rebecca (Josh) Manduchi, Stephanie (Shane) Wise, Ryan (Andrea) Hadley, Kara (David) Rohrig, Jon (Megan) Keller, Matt Keller, Natalie Keller, and Ashlyn (Leo) Acero, 17 great-grandchildren, brother-in-law Doug (Betty) Keller, sister-in-law Darlene Keller, numerous nieces and nephews and dear friends.
A celebration of Mom’s life and memory will be held on December 7, 2019 at 11:00 AM at Wiley Union Church, 2711 S. Wiley Road, Yakima, Washington, with a luncheon following.
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