Shirleen Mae Sterkel Obituary (1937

SHIRLEEN MAE (WILTGEN) STERKEL God welcomed another beautiful soul and angel into heaven. Shirleen Mae (Wiltgen) Sterkel passed away peacefully with family members by her side at Prestige Senior Living at Hearthstone in Ellensburg, Washington on Saturday, 31 December 2022. Shirleen was a two-time breast cancer survivor. After several years of remission, she was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma Cancer. Shirleens battle with cancer was extremely difficult, especially these past four plus years. Her body finally surrendered to this horrible disease, however she never wavered in her faith or devotion to family. [Insert Profile Photo of Mom here] Shirleen was born on 24 June 1937 in Ellensburg, Washington to the late Victor Wiltgen and Una (Hayes) Wiltgen. Shirleen went to school in the Ellensburg School District and graduated from Ellensburg High School in June 1955. She excelled in academics and loved all sports; but her true passion was playing tennis. She had a killer back hand stroke and a powerful serve. She enjoyed staying connected with many of her classmates and attended every class reunion. On 29 October 1955, she married Marvin Sterkel in Coeur dAlene, Idaho. After marrying, they returned to Kittitas Valley and resided in the Upper Badger Pocket area, where Dad was working as a general farm hand. On 5 July 1956, their first child, Curt Blaine was born. Curt graced this earth for only a brief time as God recalled him to heaven. The following year, they welcomed second child, Kendra Lynn. In January 1960, folks were blessed with a third child, Marvin Henry, Jr. Our folks dreamed of owning their own place on the coveted west side of the Kittitas Valley. They made that dream a reality in 196o by purchasing some nice property on the Thorp Cemetery Road. They resided there for over 45 years. However, Dad made a promise to Mom, "he'd move closer to town and shorten her commute of 13-miles into work every day." So, seventeen years ago, they purchased a large parcel of property and quickly setup permanent residency on the corner of Bender and Reecer Creek. Mom was a great multi-tasker. She juggled a full-time job, kept our home spotless, cooked hearty meals, did massive loads of laundry, grocery shopped, chauffeured to and from school and sports. She always made time for baking, sewing, and gardening. Every year, she would enter her baked goods, sewing projects, and prize-winning garden vegetables in the Open Division at the Kittitas County Fair. She would proudly display her collection of first-place blue ribbons and of course, honorable mention ribbons in her sewing room. She was also a master seamstress and loved to sew with any type of fabric and material. She did not need a pattern to follow. In fact, she made most of our clothes without one. She enjoyed making matching clothes for her twin grandchildren, Kody and Krystal (up until they turned five or six years of age). Mom enjoyed helping Krystal with her 4-H sewing projects. Mom also tackled special projects for her dear friends such as custom western pearl snapped silk shirts, Pendleton Wool shirts/jackets, formal gowns, and wedding dresses. In addition, Mom was a master gardener. You could find her in the garden plot for hours at a time cultivating/irrigating her vegetables. She planted annual crops of corn, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, radishes, onions, leaf lettuce, beets, dill, green beans, zucchini, and squash. In the fall, she would busy harvesting and canning boxes of fresh peaches, pears, and cherries along with pickling asparagus and making batches of dill and kosher pickles in old large ceramic crockpots. Mom loved painting! Good thing toobecause Dad liked everything sharp, immaculate, and wanted it painted in white, with an occasional green shed or two. Each spring/summer, she would tackle a couple large sections of four-rail fencing and/or a building. I fondly recall seeing her in paint clothes, a straw hat, listening to the radio and slapping on more paint with a brush than my brother and I combined. As a young kid, Mom had her own paper route for many years with the Daily Record Newspaper. She learned responsibility and how to manage money at quite an early age. This job allowed her to earn extra money. After high school, she started working at Sears Roebucks as a clerk. In the late sixtys, Dad started a leather business called Marvin Sterkels Leather Shop. Mom was very instrumental in helping build this business from scratch. She did everything from taking photos of all his custom pack equipment to managing the financial books. She spent many hours working alongside him tagging items, aiding with purchasing of hardware, canvas, sides of leather and conducting annual year-end inventory, etc. On 17 April 1967, she secured a full-time position at Central Washington State College (CWSC) with the Housing Office in Auxiliary Services as a Program Coordinator. Her primary responsibility was assigning incoming freshmen, returning sophomores and international students into dormitory rooms on the Ellensburg Campus. She loved interacting with students and residence staff. She held this position from 17 April 1967 to 30 June 1999. During her last eleven months of employment with Central Washington University (CWU), she transferred to another position in the Connection Card Office in Dining Services and served as a Program Coordinator until 31 May 2000. She officially retired from CWU on 1 June 2000. Mom loved to go camping, fishing, and hunting with Dad. She enjoyed being camp cook during family adventures. Our box freezers were always well-stocked with steelhead/trout, pheasant, deer, and elk. Shirleen was a devoted wife for over 64 years, daughter, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt, niece, cousin, and loyal friend. She is preceded in death by her parents, Victor and Una (Hayes) Wiltgen. Her brothers: John, Donald and Kenneth Weiss and Gerald Wiltgen. Her loving husband, Marvin Sterkel, Sr. and infant son, Curt Sterkel. Along with several brothers-in-law, sisters-in-laws, nephews-in-law, nieces-in-law, and other relatives. Survived by her daughter, Kendra Sterkel and son, Marvin (Cassy Nunley) Sterkel Jr. Her grandchildren: Krystal Sterkel, Kody (Sydnee Drinkwater) Sterkel, Sara Sterkel, Jennifer (Chris) Collins. Her great grandchildren: Parker Sterkel, Paxton Sterkel, Carlos Mejia, Jayda Behrens, and Axell Collins. Plus, numerous relatives and close family friends; too many to list. [Insert Photo of Moms Senior Graduation Photo here] Mom is once again reunited with Dad and her loving parents. She has lots of catching up to do, but we know she will continue to watch over us from heaven. Mom, you will be greatly missed and forever remain in our hearts. We love you!! In lieu of flowers, memorials/donations may be made to: Hospice Friends-Heart & Hands, Gretchen Weller Foundation, FISH program and/or any other local charitable organizations. The Public Viewing is scheduled for Saturday, 14 January 2023 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM at Brookside Funeral Home & Crematory in Ellensburg, WA. A Graveside Service will be postponed until early spring (March) at I00F Cemetery, Ellensburg, WA.