December 10, 1958 - January 09, 2016

Beautiful and Loving Wife, Mother, Sister, and Friend

We lost our courageous, beautiful, and loving wife, mother, sister, and friend to many on January 9th, after a long 8-year battle with the evil, insidious disease of colon cancer.

The cancer may have taken her, but it did not win! She lived her life to its fullest in her own way, and set an example to all of us with her strength, grace, and love.

She leaves behind her husband, Todd; son, Ryan (Kumi); grandson, Leo; son, Casey (Brooke); daughter, Kaitlin (Marcus Fermon); and two grandbabies on the way. She was so happy and thrilled to know of the grandbabies. Even though she knew she wouldn't be able to hold them physically, she already held them in her heart.

We would also like to thank Dr. Eileen Johnston, Cathy, Lois, and staff at Swedish Hospital for the care and kindness they gave her over the years. We cherish the extra years they gave us.

We would also like to acknowledge and thank the nurses at Providence Hospice for the kind care they provided Michelle in her last days. It was very comforting to have them here when we needed them.

Michelle worked with some great people at the City of Bellevue who became good friends, and we believe made her life enjoyable - even when she was undergoing chemo, with all the side effects that go with it.

She was extremely proud of her Norse heritage and being a Seattle girl, born and raised here. Seahawks fan from Day 1! Seattle Storm season ticket holder and a hockey fan.

She also leaves behind her sister Marcia Johnson; and her children Brian Johnson and Vicky Doherty; and their children. Michelle was preceded in death by her parents, Martin and Lois Olsen.

FUNERAL INFORMATION

An informal gathering of friends & family will take place on Saturday, March 5, at the Anderson school (McMenamins), 18607 Bothell Way NE in Bothell, from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. If you would like to stop in and visit and sign a memorial book we would love to see you and hear a story or two!

Memorial

All is Well

Death is nothing at all.
I have only slipped away into the next room.
I am I, you are you.
Whatever we were to each other, that we still are.

Call me by my old familiar name,
speak to me in the easy way you always used to.
Put no difference in your tone,
wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.
Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes we enjoyed together.

Let my name be ever the household word it always was,
let it be spoken without effort,
without the trace of a shadow on it.
Life means all that it ever meant.

Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight?
I am waiting for you, for an interval,
somewhere very near, just round the corner.
All is well.

Henry Scott Holland

Legacy of Love

A wife, a mother, a grandma too,
This is the legacy we have from you.
You taught us love and how to fight,
You gave us strength, you gave us might.
A stronger person would be hard to find,
And in your heart, you were always kind.
You fought for us all in one way or another,
Not just as a wife not just as a mother.
For all of us you gave your best,
Now the time has come for you to rest.
So go in peace, you've earned your sleep,
Your love in our hearts, we'll eternally keep.

Author Unknown