Joy Ann Gabrielsen-Stratton, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother “GG”, age 77 and a resident of Elma, Wash., formerly McCleary, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her family on Wednesday, July 19, 2017, after an extended illness. She was born Aug. 18, 1939, in Spokane, Wash. to Josie C. Stratton and Helen M. Connell-Stratton.
She is survived by her four children Jean (Wes) Jhanson of Elma, Joan Hargrove of Lacey, Joel Gabrielsen of Elma, John Gabrielsen of Aberdeen, nine grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. She had 15 brothers and sisters, several whom preceded her in death.
Joy was raised in Kent, Wash. and graduated from Kent Meridian HS Class of ‘57, where she worked on the truck farms with her many siblings and sold produce at the Pike Place Market. She was married Dec. 28, 1956, and later divorced after 40+ years. She was a Navy wife and the family was stationed in San Diego, Bremerton, San Francisco and other ports. After discharge from the service, she began raising her family on a farm in Garden City outside of McCleary, Wash. She was involved in her community as Bear Festival Volunteer, organized the annual Halloween City Party and was an active member of the Grays Harbor Family Fun CB Club. She also belonged to the Business & Professional Women’s Club and the Humane Society. She was involved in all of her children’s activities supporting them and was our biggest fan.
She attended Olympia Technical Community College and received her Secretarial Science Degree. She began a career as a Bookkeeper and was employed by Ebasco Services at the Satsop Nuclear Power Plant in 1979. In 1989 she worked at Harbor Hydraulics in Aberdeen for 3 years. She retired in 2004 from Aiken & Sanders in Aberdeen after 11 years.
Joy loved butterflies, she was an avid reader, loved to watch game shows, walk her beloved dogs Oscar and CoCo and was a Mariners and Seahawks fan, never missing the games on TV. She also was a caretaker to several elderly family members over the years. She was a very strong woman who loved her Irish heritage and her family always came first. We will forever hold her in our hearts as the woman who started it all.
A graveside service will be held today at 1 p.m. at the McCleary Cemetery and a celebration of life at the McCleary Community Center at 2 p.m. She asked that donations be made in her remembrance to the ARC of Grays Harbor.
