April 01, 1956 - June 26, 2012

Adventurous, Caring, Compassionate, Loving and Wise

Valerie Jean Rodgers Hamada passed away Tuesday, June 26, 2012, after a valiant 25-year battle with brain cancer. She was born in Klamath Falls, OR, on April 1, 1956, to Norma Lee and James R. Rodgers and was raised in Sprague River and Chiloquin, OR. She graduated from Chiloquin High School where she was an outstanding student and athlete. After a stint at Oregon State, she graduated from Oregon Technical Institute as an X-ray technologist. With the light of her life, son Jesse, she moved to Everett where she worked at Providence Medical Center. It was there she met her true love, Gregory Alan Hamada, whom she married in 1983 in the Chiloquin Methodist Church.

Val was adventurous, caring, compassionate, loving, and wise, topped off with a terrific sense of humor. Her empathy for all living creatures was evident early on as she rescued mangy stray cats, wounded birds, and homeless lab rats and later as she followed her heart to become a doctor. Even though tumor treatments eventually forced her to leave medical school, she went on to get a masters in counseling and worked for years for Hospice of Seattle, helping countless families deal with the loss of loved ones.

She endured several painful treatments over the years but fought back to live a full and active life. She was able to see her son Jesse grow up, graduate from college and graduate school, marry and become a fantastic daddy to her granddaughter Ellah. Her amazing husband Al allowed her to fulfill her dream to end her life with dignity by caring for her and for the abundance of loved ones who came to wish her farewell at her home in Everett in the final months of her life.

In addition to husband Greg (Al), son Jesse , daughter-in-law Amanda and granddaughter Ellah, Val is survived by her mother Norma Hill and step-father Bob of Chiloquin, OR; her sister Becky Rodgers Proctor, husband David and nieces Kayti of Boise, ID and Sarah of San Diego, CA; her brother Ed Rodgers and wife Julia, niece Erin Hamilton of Klamath Falls, OR and nephew Dan McNary of Prineville, OR; in-laws Karen and Louie Robida and niece Lindsey of Portland, OR; Doug Hamada of Hood River, OR; Mark Hamada of Portland, OR; Joni and Jerry Reid of Anacortes, WA; and Scott and Lynne Hamada and nephew Eric and nieces Claire and Sara of Hood River, OR. She is also survived by a close extended family of aunts, uncles, and cousins, including special cousins Melinda Kircher Childers of Chiloquin and Ilene Gienger Stanfield of Talent, OR. Her special bond with friends Kathryn, Joan, and Julie of Seattle began in medical school and lasted until her last breath. Val was preceded in death by her father, James R. Rodgers, and her parents-in-law Alice and Min Hamada.

FUNERAL INFORMATION

A memorial service for Val will be on Saturday, July 7, 2 p.m. at the Spirit of Grace Methodist Church, 3530 Colby Ave., in Everett with a reception to follow.

DONATIONS

As was her way, Val wanted people to donate to their local hospice or food bank instead of sending flowers. She was always concerned about those who had to do without or were in pain.

Memorial

Hope is the Thing

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

Emily Dickenson

At the Rising of the Sun 

At the rising of the sun
and its going down,
We remember you.
At the blowing of the wind
and in the chill of winter.
We remember you.
In the opening of the buds
and in the rebirth of the spring,
We remember you.
At the blueness of the skies
and in the warmth of summer,
We remember you.
At the rustling of the leaves
and the beauty of autumn,
We remember you.
As long as we live, you, too will live;
for you are forever a part of us,
As we remember you.

Author Unknown