Adella B. Collins Obituary (1933

Adella passed away peacefully at Franciscan Hospice House. She was born in Crogan in upstate New York and had two sisters. She met her husband Richard (Dick) who was the brother of her best friend. They married in 1950. Dick joined the Air Force for 3 years. He was a physics teacher for a few years before joining the Navy. They had 3 children. Despite all of the difficulties of being a military family she was a wonderful stay at home Mom. She was supportive and involved with all of the kids' activities. Looking back it is amazing how she survived taking care of 3 kids (especially with occasional sibling rivalries!!) while Dick was on sea duty 6 months at a time. She was also active in the military wives clubs. Adella and Dick always made time for family vacations including camping, fishing and trips to national parks and Disneyland. Dick's last tour of duty was at Bangor, Washington and they settled in the Silverdale area. They fell in love with the area and traveled all around the state (even on a motorcycle for a couple of years). When all of her children moved out she still wanted to take care of kids so she decided to go back to school to become a pre-school teacher. She taught for about 10 years before retiring. Adella and Dick were ecstatic when they had their grandchildren. They were typical doting grandparents. For the last 6 years Adella was taken well care of by the staff at The Lodge at Mallards Landing in Gig Harbor. Adella loved history. She always read up on the history of where she lived. She would stop at all of the historical markers or visitor centers while traveling. She was also a movie buff. She knew all the gossip of the movie stars from the 30's to 50's. She and Dick enjoyed going to plays in Seattle. They had season tickets to the Paramount for several years which they shared with their appreciative daughter. They took several trips to Hawaii and to New York to visit their families. They were also both big Mariners fans and were able to go to a few games. Adella is survived by her daughter Diane (Terry); sons Jerry and Randy (Basia); and grandchildren Krina (Brent) and James. She will be interred with her husband at the Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent.