March 31, 1965 - February 05, 2014

Loved by All

All who knew our brave, wise and lovely Lisa will understand how she will be missed. Lisa often had to endure pain but she would be the first to tell you she’d had a good and full life. She liked people and had a ready smile, loved to talk, approached life pragmatically, was proudly liberal, was generous with her time and helpful when possible, and a great and funny story teller. Lisa was a Trekkie practically from birth (original series); she liked the aspiration for humankind to become better. She also loved animals and felt strongly that we should not only work to improve the lives of individual animals but also to protect their habitat, including the planet in general. She would have been devastated to know that we were to lose our little girl dog Snowy to kidney failure less than a month after her own passing.

She earned an AA degree from Shoreline CC and her BA from the UW, majoring in Political Science, on the 12 year plan (before the Americans with Disabilities Act was in place). She was accepted into the Master’s program in Psychology at Seattle University but health problems made it impossible for her to attend. Lisa always despaired that she was never well enough to work even as a child, when she started an Ostomy group for young people and would occasionally be asked to make a hospital visit to a frightened child facing the surgery. She also very much enjoyed leading classes in English as a Second Language, feeling she learned as much from her students as she was able to help them. She also volunteered in the library at Shoreline CC. When she began dialysis, she became active in the Kidney Patients’ Association, and served on the Scholarship Committee of the NW Kidney Foundation.

Lisa was preceded in death by her father, Don Hale, and her sister Mary Ellen Epler. She is survived by her mother, Ellen Hale, her sisters Becky Glass and Penny Christen, brothers-in-law Bob Glass and Dave Epler, seven beloved nieces and nephews (Nathan Jones, Sarah Smith, Phillip Epler, Telzey Bartley, Micaela Smith, Hannah Smith, and Keira Smith), great nieces and nephews (Kaitlynn Castaña, Bailie Jones, Breanna James, Shane Epler, Amelia Epler, and Miles Bartley), many caring cousins and generous kind and loving friends who made this last journey meaningful and bearable.

The family would like to express their gratitude to Providence Hospice and to Dr. Susan Baumgaertel. We’d also like to thank Northwest Kidney Centers where Lisa dialyzed for 13 years, and we’d especially like to thank the two families who in their time of greatest grief donated their loved one’s kidney—the last one lasted 16 years.

FUNERAL INFORMATION

There will be a memorial gathering at the family home (18003 Stone Ave N, Shoreline, WA) at 2:00 pm on Saturday April 5. Dress is casual—please come hungry as we’ll be serving some of Lisa’s favorite foods. Memorials to your favorite charities or just an unexpected smile for a passer-by.

Memorial

Sweet Dreams

Peacefully, sleep comes to a dear beloved heart.
Quietly, we understand the time has come to part.
Tenderly, the love shines on ... a never-ending light.
Gratefully, we feel its warmth and say,
"Sweet dreams, good-night."

Author Unknown

A Friend

"When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving much advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a gentle and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares".

Henri Nouwen