Lola D. Risbell

(August 16, 1927 â€" May 23, 2009

Our beloved Mother, Grandmother, Lola D. Risbell, fought a brave and courageous battle against cancer. She fought it with dignity and grace and is at peace now. She leaves behind 4 children, Becki Day, Riley Risbell (Cherie Maxwell-Risbell). David Risbell, Kelly Risbell (Kathy Risbell), 3 grandchildren, Rachael, Casey and Cameron Risbell, and many nieces and nephews.

Lola was born in Seattle. She was adopted by the Dale family, now deceased, her parents, Dr. David H. and Lola Dale, brothers Dr. David W. Dale and Dwyer Dale. She graduated from Garfield High School (1945) and Seattle University (1950), where she received her BA in History. In 1950 she married the love of her life, the late Albert C. Risbell. They moved to Bellevue in 1955, became parishioners of Sacred Heart Catholic Church and settled down to raise their family. Lola became a widow at age 30, and devoted the rest of her life to her children and grandchildren and helping others. She was lover of cats. She always had a feline companion by her side. As the family expanded over the years she devoted her life to helping her children raise their families, whether it was the children or the cats and dogs.

After being a widow for 6 years the late Father Gerald T. Moore hired Lola to be the secretary for Sacred Heart Catholic Church and School, where she worked for the next 8 years. Lola then went on to work for the phone company, then Pacific Northwest Bell, until retirement in 1992. In between working full time, volunteering for the St. Joan’s Guild, raising 4 children and running a household, she sewed all her own clothes, knit all of the family’s sweaters, mittens and hats and took care of all household repairs. Upon retirement in 1992 from PNB, Lola joined the Pioneers, where she served on the Board of Directors as the recording secretary. While taking up exercise classes, she grew restless with all of her spare time in retirement, and started working at Bellevue Square as one of the information ladies. She worked there until 2000, when she moved to Friday Harbor to begin a new journey in her life until her passing. She began her final decade by volunteering at the San Juan Island Library, for Soroptimist International of Friday Harbor (where she became an honorary member) and the Mullis Community Senior Center. For 2 summers she worked at Roche Harbor Resort as the day hostess for McMillan’s Dining Room. She continued to enjoy her exercise classes, running errands, volunteering, and still found time to devote herself to her children and grandchildren.

She touched the lives of many and will always be remembered for her sense of humor, her grace and dignity, her devotion to her family, the sparkle in her eyes when she talked of all of them, their pets, their accomplishments. A celebration of her life will be held on June 7, 2009 at 1:00 pm at the Roche Harbor Resort Pavillion, 248 Reuben Memorial Drive, Friday Harbor, WA. A memorial fund in Lola Risbell’s name has been set up at Islander’s Bank, PO Box 909, Friday Harbor, WA, 98250.




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David Lee Spurgeon

July 22. 1945 - May 17. 2009

David Lee, as he called himself, was born October 15, 1934 in Hoquiam, Washington. He died peacefully at home in the loving care of his wife Mary Ann May 13, 2009.

David's early years were spent in Ballard, Washington and later the family lived in Ballard. Subsequently, the family moved to Fremont in northern California. As a senior in high school, he was elected student body president. David was a born entrepreneur and always fascinated with automobiles, a lifetime love.

In order to purchase his first car, for three years he made money from his newspaper route and pushing an ice cream cart. All this labor of love occurred before he was old enough to get a driver's license. Upon entering the working world, he joined with a General Motors distributorship and sold automobiles.

A natural and the top salesman, he sold so many cars that he was eligible to merit his own franchise but, was turned down by General Motors because "he was too young ... only 23 years old." Undaunted, he terminated that job and became a successful land developer in the Sierra Nevada foothills.

In his next career, he founded and became president of CanAm Corporation, an engineering firm which successfully developed products by extracting raw materials from copper slag. These products were sold nation-wide to 3M Corporation, roofing companies and others.

David moved to San Juan Island in the early 1990's settling on Neil Bay where he began, in earnest, to gather his rather significant collection of automobiles and "toys."

He married Mary Ann Duddleson in 2001 and during the last ten years of his life, he remained his effervescent self with a remarkable zest for life. His generous philanthropy was legend and one of his favorite quotes was, "I love to touch someone's life" ... and he did in so many ways. The aid he gave to Guide Dogs for the Blind was above the mark. We will miss David, his lust for life and marvelous sense of humor.

A celebration of his life is planned for sometime in the summer. In lieu of flowers, donations for his remembrance may be made to: Guide Dogs For The Blind, P.O. Box 151200
San Rafael, CA 94915.


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Pamela Nichols

Two dates dominate our sojourn on earth -the day we are born and the day we die, but it is all the time in between that really matters, and the years that Pam Nichols lived mattered a whole lot. Here is what she had to say not long ago: “Brain cancer would not have been my chosen way to die, but I am not afraid of dying. I am Scandinavian, a realist, and life doesn’t happen the way it should. Life happens the way it happens, sometimes with reasons and sometimes without reasons, but that’s the way it is.�

Pam approached the end of her life with full knowledge of what was coming and she was a champ; absolutely amazing. She did not retreat into herself, she embraced memories of a successful life and career, she shared her hours with people who loved her (and the dogs and cats) and relived fun times with laughter and tears. She drank champagne and she abandoned decades of watching her weight. She held on to her style, her humor and her dignity. She talked about what was really important: “Charlie is my greatest gift. He made things happen to go with my aspirations, making my life what it is. The kids and grandkids bring such unbridled joy to our lives, and my sister, Nancy, and the rest of my family.�

She lived a life of ever-expanding horizons. Travel, sailing, taking on daunting challenges like sky-diving, white-water kayaking, and bungee-jumping, climbing through jungles, and giving an incredible amount of her time and talent to volunteerism. She made new friends and kept the old; she was devoted and faithful to all of them. She was, on the one hand, a tough-minded realist, and on the other a tender romantic, a lover of animals, flowers, and all things beautiful.

In high school Pam joined the Civil Air Patrol and later became a cadet commander as well as the Minnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol Queen. She was totally self-supporting in college, working as many as three jobs at a time. Pam earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management and held positions as a director of corporate staff personnel and the vice president of human resources at ADC Telecommunications. In 1997, the University of Minnesota honored Pam with an Outstanding Achievement Award, supported by colleagues who praised her dedication. One wrote, “Ms. Nichols truly is a unique person, one who has learned how to balance professional success with extraordinary community involvement.�

We on the island benefited from the best of both of those sides of her. When Pam and her husband, Charlie Bodenstab, retired to San Juan Island, Pam began a new phase of volunteer work. She contributed immeasurably to the San Juan Community Theatre as board president and to the successful campaign to build the Performing Arts Resource Center. Subsequent leadership in the fledgling Visual Arts Museum was a source of well-deserved pride. Pam loved the island. She adored Charlie, her life with him, and all their family, friends, and pets. She was well and truly loved in return.
Pamela leaves us with wonderful memories of her full and giving life. We’ll miss her.

It was Pamela’s wish that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the San Juan Community Theatre or the Islands Museum of Art and Sculpture Park.

A celebration of Pamela Nichols’ life will be held at the San Juan Community Theatre on Sunday, May 17th at 2:00 p.m.





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