Obituary: Eilertsen, Emily Gene
(Ragle) Eilertsen, 88, died Monday, December 1, 2014 at Anna Jaques Hospital in Newburyport following a brief illness.
Born in Vallejo, CA on November 3, 1926, she was the daughter of Dr. Harold Eugene Ragle, a career U.S. Navy physician, and Etta Auguste (Smith) Ragle.
She had fond childhood memories of Navy assignments in Hawaii, the San Francisco Bay area, and Washington, D.C., and enjoyed vacationing in Bayside, Maine and visiting relatives in Kansas.
At the age of 15, Emily Gene experienced firsthand the attack on Pearl Harbor, where her father was stationed.
Afterwards, she was evacuated with her family to California and later graduated from high school in Seaside, OR.
E.G.
earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History at the University of Washington, where she was a proud member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.
It was there she met her future husband, William James “Bill” Eilertsen of Seattle, following his return from service in the U.S. Army during World War II.
They married in 1948 and settled in Spokane, WA to raise their family.
The couple had been married 46 years when Bill died of cancer in 1994.
Together they found happiness in walking, traveling, and spending time with their family and friends.
For twenty-four years, E.G.
was employed as an elementary school reading specialist in Spokane.
Upon retirement in 1998, she moved to Newburyport, MA where she especially enjoyed the city’s historic waterfront and the beautiful beaches of Plum Island, as she had a life-long love of the ocean.
E.G.
was an avid card player and sports fan.
She rooted for the Boston Red Sox, but always remained loyal to her San Francisco teams.
Her greatest joy later in life was spending time with her grandchildren, of whom she was extremely proud.
Emily Gene is survived by two daughters, Joan (Eilertsen) Wroe and her husband, Ed, of Coeur d’Alene, ID, and Jill (Eilertsen) Rogers and her husband, Gary, of Byfield, MA; a son, Jeffrey Ragle Eilertsen of Spokane, WA; seven grandchildren, Emily Wroe of Neno, Malawi, Elizabeth Wroe and her wife, Julie Begin, of Denver, CO, Peter Wroe and his wife, Mishan, of Oakland, CA, Jake Rogers of Ipswich, MA, Grant Rogers of Jackson, WY, Anna Eilertsen of Oakland, CA, and Thomas Eilertsen of Spokane, WA; one great-granddaughter, Alma Wroe of Oakland, CA; three nephews; and close friend and sorority-sister, Patricia (Bendshadler) Hamilton of Kirkland, WA.
She was also predeceased by her sister, Elizabeth “Bettie” (Ragle) Soule, and Martha E. Hay.
A private memorial service will be held by the family on the West Coast.
Those wishing to honor E.G.
are encouraged to donate to Essex County Greenbelt Association, www.ecga.org; or to Partners In Health, www.pih.org, in support of her granddaughter, Dr. Emily Wroe’s work in the southeast African country of Malawi.
For more information and to send online condolences, please visit www.grondinfuneralservices.com.
Grondin Funeral Home, Beverly, MA