Eloise R. Blondin

Eloise Blondin, beloved wife of Ray Blondin, passed peacefully at her home on September 11, 2011 at the age of 90. Eloise was born in 1921 to George and Mollie (Boyd) Shearer in Kalispell, Montana. At the age of 3, they moved to Yakima, WA along with her sisters, Betty Ormiston and Olive Sanford who all preceded her in death.

As a child, Eloise picked raspberries earning 3 cents a basket, and sold eggs for 16 cents a dozen. She kept records of all her sales which set her on a path of meticulous record keeping. She saved her money to buy a Hunky Shaw Special bicycle with red diamond tread tires. Eloise got an early start on her education learning math on her father’s knee. Eloise was inducted into the National Honor Society as a junior at Yakima High School and graduated in 1939. She became proficient in shorthand and worked as a secretary with the Yakima School District, later became personal secretary to the Superintendant of Schools, A.C. Davis.

In 1939, she went on a blind date which is how she was introduced to Ray Blondin, whom she married in 1943 at St Paul’s Cathedral. They spent 73 faithfully devoted years of undying love, separated only while he served his country as an Aviation Cadet in the Army Air Corp during World War II. In 1946, she left her job to become a full-time wife and mother to their two children.

Eloise took great pride in keeping an immaculate home, caring for her children and involving herself in activities such as sewing square dancing, tole painting, ceramics, serving as her daughter’s Campfire leader, and watching her son’s sporting events. No matter what she chose to engage in, she did it with joy, style and precision. Her husband was a field representative for the original Rainier Fruit Company and, later, Roche Fruit Company, and Eloise spent many hours canning fruits. She was a quiet, reserved, soft-spoken lady, who loved gatherings with her extended family. The family enjoyed camping, traveling for vacations, and boating in the boat Ray built by hand. .

Eloise is survived by husband, Ray Blondin; daughter, Diana Friedlander (Len); grandchildren, Lisa Hansen (Bryan), Michael Rust, Mark Blondin (Teresa), and Eric Blondin; great grandchildren, Derek Hansen and Emma Blondin; and numerous sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, and extended family.

She was preceded in death by her son, Raymond Blondin Jr, her parents, and sisters.

Her family has been blessed to have such a wonderful lady in their lives and extends their gratitude for the acts of love from family and friends and Yakima Regional Hospice.

Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday, September 19, 2011 with a Vigil beginning at 6:00 p.m., at Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, Yakima.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, September 20, at Holy Family Catholic Church. Burial will follow at Terrace Heights Memorial Park.

Arrangements under the direction of Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, Yakima, WA.