JoAnne Gossett

JoAnne Gossett (Nickel), 90, passed away peacefully on January 20th. She is survived by brother Michael (Darlene), sons Dave (Laurie), Rick (Donna), Steve (Judy), Dan, and Jim (Robin), grandchildren Erin (Jon), Regi (Jasmine), and Zak; and numerous step grandchildren, great grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild.

Born in Omak, JoAnne was the child of Clarence and Corine Nickel. As a child she danced for Barclay Shelton Studios in the 1930s and missed nearly an entire school year because there were fears she had polio. Those fears never materialized. She graduated from Lincoln High School and attended the University of Washington. It was there that she met her husband Bill Gossett. Married in 1949, they were the third couple to purchase a home in Mountlake Terrace where they raised their five boys and celebrated holidays. Following Bill’s death in 2017, JoAnne continued until recently to live in the family home.

JoAnne was very creative. She made corsages for the boys’ grade school teachers. She specialized in wrapping Christmas presents. The presents would be wrapped as many different things such as Santa Claus, the Wise Men, tin soldiers, and trains and castles in which each part of castle or car of the train was a different present for a different person.

JoAnne was an excellent baker, and she used those skills to make any celebration special. She cooked 25-30 kinds of cookies for each Christmas, many elaborately decorated with multiple colors of frosting to represent ornaments, Christmas trees, Santa Clauses, etc. And for birthdays she would bake elaborate theme cakes such as trains and boats when the children were young and later in life made the favorite cake or pie of the person celebrating the birthday.

JoAnne enjoyed taking camping vacations with the family when the boys were growing up and they traveled around to various National Parks in the western US and Canada in a Volkswagen bus. Later, she and Bill traveled to Europe and the Far East. After her brother was stationed in Japan and sent her a Japanese doll as a present, she became fascinated with Far Eastern culture and had many Japanese, Chinese, and other Far Eastern items in her home. She was an avid gardener and reader. She never went to a plant sale without purchasing something new to adorn the yard. Mysteries were her favorites.

Family was very important to JoAnne. She and Bill were always available to help the boys with projects and homework. She and Bill welcomed and loved those their sons brought into the family. She was a dedicated wife, mother, and grandmother, and great-grandmother.

There will be no public service. She was very much loved and will be missed.