Jacqueline M. Gray

Jacqueline (Jackie) M. Gray passed away Saturday, March 25, 2023, at the age of 81, following complications from surgery. Jackie was born September 26, 1941, in Saint Cloud, France, to Armande and Adolf Hoestlandt. She immigrated to the United States when her mother married Fay Hoag, an American soldier, and moved to Washington state. Fay lovingly raised Jackie as one of his daughters. And she spent most of her childhood in Seattle with her adored sisters Liliane (Hoag) Wimmer and Micheline (Hoag) Middleton.

It is often said that Jackie never met a stranger and that she had a natural gift for connecting with people and making each person feel special. She lived life to the fullest and made demonstrating love for others her highest priority. The most profound gift she leaves her family is how to act authentically with kindness and integrity.

Jackie met the love of her life, Jim Gray, when she was in high school. They were married for 61 years when he passed away in November 2019. Early in their marriage, they lived and traveled in many of the states in the American Great Plains before returning to the Seattle area to raise their two children: Jeanine Gray Swanson and Jason Gray. Jackie and Jim created a welcoming home in Bothell, Washington, that was a hub for Jason and his friends from elementary school through high school. They moved to Winthrop, Washington, when they retired and designed a beautiful, park-like property on the Chewuch River, where they enjoyed being surrounded by wildlife, visiting with friends, and hosting family visits to the Methow Valley.

Jackie was a dedicated workers’ union member and enjoyed learning how to safely operate and clean food industry machinery at Oberto and Turner & Pease. She warmly talked about the diverse people she met in the workplace and the positive impact knowing them had on her life.

One of Jackie’s proudest accomplishments was taking the oath of citizenship on September 11, 2003. She committed to the naturalization process following the 2001 attack on the Twin Towers in New York. As a child immigrant who lived in the US almost her entire life, she felt like an American long before she passed the Naturalization Civics Test and swore the Oath of Allegiance. She was serious about participating in the responsibility of voting after becoming a citizen.

Jackie and Jim were delighted to live the last of their retirement years sharing a home in Castle Rock, Colorado, with their beloved son and daughter-in-law, Jason and Kathryn Gray. And with their cherished grandsons, Aidan & Keagan Gray. Jackie often said that sharing a home with her grandsons was amazing because she was able to watch them grow from inquisitive, helpful children into compassionate, committed young adults. It meant the world to her that always said they loved her before they left the house.

A graveside service for Jackie was held on Saturday, June 3.

“Kindness is a passport that opens doors and fashions friends. It softens hearts and molds relationships that can last lifetimes.” – Joseph B. Wirthlin