Margaret Elaine York

Elaine was born on August 9, 1957 in Guam to Jackie C. and Marion Frances Stewart. They moved to Tucson when she was around two where she attended Redeemer Lutheran School, Amphitheater Middle School and Amphitheater High School meeting several forever friends. She attended Catalina Heights Church of the Nazarene where she fell in love with Jesus and met more forever friends. After high school graduation she went to the University of Arizona for one year and then continued her education at Point Loma College in San Diego where again she met more forever friends.

Elaine returned to Tucson where she taught the youth group at Catalina Heights Church and had a blast doing it, she loved those kids. During this time she met Tom York who she married in 1983. They had two children, Cameron and Christian. She worked at Stewart Block and Brick, the family business, for several years and then discovered The Pampered Chef. She loved this job and as a matter of fact she didn’t consider it a job as she said that she gets paid for meeting people.

Her struggles with cancer began with a hysterectomy, follow ups proved that it had been caught early enough with no after effects. Then in 2012 she began having some bad pain in her left eye, it was diagnosed as Ocular Melanoma. Utilizing her circle of friends and a lot of research she found Loma Linda Hospital in California. Her first treatment started on July 15th and finished on July 20th. The tumor stopped growing and had actually reduced a little bit. 2014 she got a call that the tumor had started growing again so she went back to Loma Linda for a second treatment. She was being checked constantly because she had been told if the tumor were to migrate it would go the lungs or liver. She receive a call on January 12, 2015 that it had moved to the liver. She contacted Cancer Treatment Centers in Goodyear, AZ and began treatment there. Unfortunately this turned into a fast growing cancer and after some initial treatments there was a side effect which caused her liver enzymes to rise. They placed her on a steroid to try to bring them down so they could start the treatment again. She went to the emergency room in Wickenburg, where she a Tom lived, on Tuesday, June 23rd and was transferred to Abrazo West Valley Hospital in Goodyear where they tried to stabilize her for surgery. They were unable to do so and Elaine passed away on June 24th at 10:20.

Elaine is survived by her parents Jack and Frances Stewart, her husband Tom York, son Cameron York and wife Britny York, son Christian York, grandchildren Dane Lee and Kira Belle York, brother Mike Stewart and wife Pam Stewart. She was well loved by her family and friends. Her beautiful smile, quick wit and warmth will be greatly missed.