Gwen Lorette Shinneman passed away peacefully in Freeland April 2.

Gwen was born Oct. 21, 1923 to John and Lydia Lorette in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The second of three children, she and her family resided outside “Hudson’s Hope” — a small trade and prospecting settlement in northern British Columbia.

In 1928, her family moved to Port Gamble, Wash., where she enjoyed her childhood school years. Graduating from North Kitsap Union High School in 1940, she moved to Seattle and worked as a beautician and later an accountant.

There, she met her husband Leroy B. Shinneman and they were married Dec. 26, 1946. Together they owned many homes in the greater Seattle area and eventually settled in Bellevue, Wash., to raise their two sons.

Gwen was a devoted mother and wife, a woman of faith and gave generously of her time to family, friends in need and her church. She always enjoyed the pleasures of the seashore, as well as her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Gwen moved to Whidbey Island in 2013 to be near her son.

She was preceded in death by her husband and her two brothers, and is survived by two sons Frank and John Shinneman, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. A memorial will be held in May.