Obituary of Elaine P. Powell

Elaine Phyliss Powell was born in Montesano Washington on February 19, 1926 to Ed and Pearl Hammill. Ed was a logger and he and Pearl raised six children: Glen, Lillian, Cecil, Theodore (Ted), Elaine, and Geraldine (Gerry). Gerry is the remaining sibling alive. The Hammill family had troubles with some of the early siblings and this deeply affected the rest of the family. Elaine learned the value of hard work from her parents, especially her mom, Pearl, who cooked, cleaned, and baked for all of them. Her dad was an avid reader, as was Elaine, Gerry and Cecil. Elaine's love of bookkeeping in high school led to a job working at the National Bank of Commerce. This off and on career path in banking lasted until she retired. She worked in the Olympia branch of NB of C in the note and foreign exchange departments. Customers chose to wait in a longer line for her friendly and efficient service.Elaine met and married Darell A. Powell in 1948. They soon moved to Olympia. Like her dad, Darell was a logger and also was a mill worker. In 1956, he started working for the Olympia Brewery. Their daughter, Joyce, was born in 1949 in Aberdeen and their son, Michael, was born in Olympia in 1956. Darell and Elaine bought property off Steamboat Island Rd, near Shelton, which had bay frontage, Sanderson Harbor. When they built a bayside home in 1962, Elaine went back to work full-time. The bayside home had oyster and clam beds. Elaine learned how to fry oysters, which were often served at the many Powell family reuinions. Hal and Eva Abrams (both deceased) were the couple's best friends. The men both worked for the brewery and the wives were both working women. The two couples took many family vacations into Canada and later on, Hawaii. Darell and Elaine often went out on the bay fishing. She usually caught more fish than Darell. When Darell retired, Elaine worked part time for the bank so they could motorhome into Mexico (twice), as well as New Orleans and Montana. When Darell went into dementia, the couple moved into town until his passing in 1991. Later on, Elaine became involved with Jim Cahill. They were great companions until his passing. Eventually Elaine moved back to Aberdeen to live near her daughter, Joyce (Rick) Hanson. As her health declined, she moved into their home until her passing. Elaine leaves behind two grandchildren from her daughter Joyce (Jennifer Moss and Thomas Grimm) and Jenner has two children: Sam and Sydney. When Elaine's family lived off Steamboat Island Rd, she helped start the Episcopal church mission, St. Christopher's. Much later on, she and Joyce occasionally served on the altar guild at St. Andrew's in Aberdeen. As usual, the sequence and the statistics don't tell the whole story. Elaine worked hard in her married life. She baked, kept a clean house, cooked "Sunday" dinners on a daily basis, even while she was working full-time. After retirement, she enjoyed travel, gardening, playing cards, Bunco, shopping, reading, and watching the Seahawks and Mariners. Later on, Elaine liked playing the slots at the local casinos. Elaine generously shared her home as her children moved back after divorce. The two grown grandchildren even moved in for short periods of time. Elaine was a loving and generous person. She was funny and feisty. As she aged, her strong views about different issues would bring smiles, knowing looks, and an occasional kick under the table from family members. She will be missed by all who knew her. You may leave memories and condolences for the family by clicking on "View Guestbook" below.