Retired elementary school teacher Naomi Elizabeth Mathisen of Renton passed away in her home of 65 years on November 21, 2022 at the age of 95.
Born in April of 1927, Naomi grew up in the Kent East Hill area and graduated from Kent High School in 1945. She attended the University of Washington and graduated from Pacific Lutheran University in 1949. She married her husband Lance in 1952, enjoying 51 years of marriage before his death in 2003.
She began her career at Boeing, serving as the Public Relations Librarian for nine years before pursing her true passion of educating children. She taught in the Renton School District until her retirement in 1990, impacting many young lives.
After retirement, she enjoyed traveling with her husband, friends and family. Between the cruises and Elderhostel tours, she was very active in the Retired Teachers Association on both the local and state level, remaining engaged and productive for nearly 30 years.
Among her greatest passions were gardening and flowers. She maintained over 60 planters on her patio each summer, carefully attending to them and watching them thrive. Her love of flowers was often reflect- ed in her wardrobe, where floral prints were a familiar theme. She was always stylish; well dressed with coordinating jewelry and purses.
But most of all, she was a loving, attentive and generous parent and grandparent. A presence at nearly every family gathering, from piano recitals, to little league games, to holidays, to Seahawk parties on Sunday, she was a beloved presence who was always interested in others.
In her later years, she enjoyed watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy, and was a big fan of the Seahawks, Mariners, golf and March Madness, filling out her bracket every year.
Naomi was preceded in death by her husband Lance and brother Wes. She is survived by her sister Beverly, daughters Cheryl (Mark), Lori (Claude), grandchildren Jared (Stephanie), Lauren (Chase), Rachel and Mike, and great grandchildren Hadley, Easton and Ella and soon to be 4th great grandson.
Memorial service will be held on Sunday December 4, 2022 at 1:30 PM at Zion Lutheran Church at 25105 132nd Ave SE , Kent, WA 98042
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Renton/ South King Retirees mini grant fund, C/O Sue Perez, 1058 SW 152nd St. Burien, WA 98166, as Naomi was involved in reading grant requests and determining recipients for many years.
Talk to us
Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.
To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.
