Obituary: Sweeny, Deborah Joy (Rauscher)
Age 61
Deborah’s survivors include her husband of twenty six years, Dennis, and her immediate family: brothers Ted (Marilyn); Daniel (Charlotte); John (Bonnie); Jim (Cheryl); and sister Linda Babcock (Gene).
Deborah will also be lovingly remembered by her mother-in-law, Lillian Sweeny; numerous brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, grand-nieces and grand-nephews.
This loving and caring extended family will mourn Deborah’s loss, but cherish her final journey to eternal peace and happiness.
Deborah endured a brief, yet valiant, struggle with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.
Although the disease ultimately prevailed, Deborah’s will to live, her love of life itself, and her enduring hope of recovery remained strong and steady until her last moments on this earth.
One cannot distill the essence of an individual’s lifetime into a few brief sentences.
I feel the true essence of Deborah’s being lay in her compassion for others, her unwillingness to accept adversity or defeat, and her enduring desire to recognize only the positive aspects of any situation or individual she encountered.
Deborah’s strength and resolve were a fountain from which anyone she touched could drink and replenish their souls and their faith in humanity and the Lord.
Our sincere thanks and gratitude go out to the staff and physicians of Valley General Hospital, Providence/Sacred Heart Hospital, Cancer Care NW, and finally the Hospice of Spokane organization and the Hospice House itself where Deborah spent her last moments in a caring, compassionate, and truly loving environment.
Deborah’s life will be celebrated by a mass at St Augustine Catholic Church at 11:00 am on Saturday, February 1, 2014.
A private inurnment will be held at a later date.
No flowers are necessary.
Any memorial may be given to Hospice of Spokane, 121 S Arthur, Spokane, WA 99202 in Deborah’s honor.