Jeanette Rose Harris

Jeanette Rose Boyden Harris, age 84, died on December 31, 2025, after a years-long struggle with a failing heart. She remained in her beloved home in Kirkland, Washington, with its beautiful gardens filled with many varieties of her favorite flower, roses, until the end.

She was proceeded in death by her parents, oldest brother William Boyden, youngest brother, Richard Boyden, and her husband, Russel H. Harris, Jr.

Jeanette had an enthusiastic and cheerful way about her. She was deeply committed to love and encouraging to everyone. She treated her family and friends as one. Her daughter Kerry said, “Mom never met a stranger.” It was certainly true. She will be dearly missed by her family, many friends, and acquaintances.

Jeanette was born on December 4, 1941, in a home her dad built. Several years later, the family moved to an 80-acre dairy farm located on Woods Creek Road in Monroe, Washington. She was the only daughter of Ruth and Harry Boyden. She had two older brothers, William and Robert, and a younger brother, Richard, who was only 5 days less than a year younger than her.

Growing up on the farm, she spent many happy hours with family and friends picking berries, riding bikes and horses, and swimming in Woods Creek. The farm provided a very modest living for the family. Jeanette’s parents, though, made financial sacrifices to give her a gift that she would cherish the rest of her life. From age nine to age fourteen, they paid for her to have piano lessons. Jeanette was forever grateful to her parents for those sacrifices.

Jeanette had a life-long Christian faith. God called her to a life dedicated to spreading His Love and Grace. She was a member of Eastside Church.

Music, especially praise and worship music, was a beautiful blessing in her life. She wrote many faith-oriented songs and played and recorded some on the harp, which she learned to play in her adult life. Her songs were often musical prayer. Jeanette considered her love and joy of music to be an anointing from God.

Jeanette graduated from Monroe High School in 1959. Her older brothers played on the school’s winning 1952 and 1953 teams in the Washington State Basketball Championships. Jeanette went on to earn Bachelor of Science degrees in nursing from both Seattle Pacific University and the University of Washington.

After graduation, Jeanette was blessed with several different jobs in the medical profession. She worked as a nurse at the Swedish and Group Health hospitals, was a Public Health Nurse, Director of a weight loss clinic, a medical sales consultant for a recruiting company and a pharmaceutical representative for Pfizer.

God works in mysterious ways was certainly true for Jeanette. While employed by the recruiting company, she arranged an interview for a candidate for a pharmaceutical representative position at Pfizer. The candidate failed to show for the interview. Jeanette thought the position would be a good fit for her, so asked if she could do the interview instead.

Pfizer offered her the job and she accepted. It was during her time there, that met her second husband. She invited him to one of Pfizer’s education dinners at a “scrumptious” French restaurant. He was a “No See” doctor (pharmaceutical reps were not allowed medical office meetings), so it was the only way she could market her cardiovascular and arthritis medications to him. They were married for twenty-seven years and he preceded her in death in July of 2017. All because someone failed to show for an interview.

Jeanette lived in her Kirkland home for over 40 years. She knew the home was meant for her when she learned the developer had named it the “rose model.” With the middle name Rose and it being her favorite flower, how could it be otherwise? Jeanette planted many varieties of rose bushes in the gardens around the house. Her favorite was the “Double Delight.”

Jeanette had a life-long Christian faith. God called her to a life dedicated to spreading His Love and Grace. She was not always successful, but her goal was to obey her wonderful Lord and pursue and follow Love. She was deeply committed to her beloved Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, and loved to be a vessel of His everlasting love, not only to her family and friends, but even by encouraging and edifying strangers.

Two of her favorite scriptures were Jeremiah 31:3 and Hosea 11:4:

Jeremiah 31:3 - “The Lord appeared to me from ages past, saying “I have loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore, with loving kindness, I have drawn you and continued My faithfulness to you.”

Hosea 11:4 - “I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love. To them I was like one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent down to feed them.”

She is survived by her brother, Robert Boyden, two wonderful daughters, Lisa Drews and Kerry Stebbins, four precious grandchildren, Chase, Kyle, Sarah, and Ellie, and several nieces and nephews. Jeanette always told her grandchildren upon saying goodbye in person or in letters: “3 squeezes x infinity”!!! XOXO.

Jeanette will be buried in Sultan, Washington, with her husband, parents, and grandparents.

In lieu of flowers, please consider her favorite charity, Youth Unlimited Guatemala at https://youthunlimited.net

Below is a poem written by her best friend from childhood, Caroline Howell Thompson, who died in July 2015

Special Friends

We met one summer, two young girls

I didn’t know then how special she is.

One tall, one short, Best Friends

Bicycles, slumber parties, shared secrets.

Her Mom’s cookies, my Mom’s love

Failed fudge, We ate it with a spoon.

Summers spent picking berries, I taught her to drive,

High school, laughter, tears, Inseparable friends.

She went to college, I fell in love,

Careers, babies, Separate lives.

Occasional phone calls, Fewer lunches,

Unspoken bond, Waiting to resume.

Operations, accidents, Life’s bruises

How quickly we reached Middle age.

Our clothes are looser, Our figures “mature”

Faces with more lines, Her’s turn up when she smiles.

Life’s full circle, Best friends,

Shopping trips, tea, Shared feelings.

She accepts my faults, I can’t see hers

I trust her completely, We’re comfortable together.

We promise to always keep in touch,

And if the fudge fails, We’ll eat it with a spoon!