Verna Edman passed away peacefully on February 4, 2024 at age 98 ¾ (“Halves and quarters count before age 5 and after age 95” she always said).
Born on July 6, 1925 in Fresno, California, Verna attended John Muir Elementary, Hamilton Jr Hi and Fresno High, graduating in 1943. Her education continued at Fresno State College (now CSU Fresno) graduating with degrees in Biology and Chemistry. This landed her very impressive and challenging jobs as a Medical Technologist, Laboratory Scientist and Phlebotomist. A lifelong passion for learning continued as she returned to school to keep up with new medical knowledge and return to work after her children were born.
At a blind date on a hayride she met Leland “lee” Edman. Married in 1948, they lived together happily for 64 years. After the wedding they briefly lived in San Francisco while Lee attended Hastings Law School. Soon, they returned to Fresno and three beautiful artistic daughters were born: Janet, Lynn, and Karen.
Verna was always so kind, so interested in people and loved being busy, involved, and helpful. She was an active member of Kappa Kappa Gamma (active and alumni), Junior League, Law League, Fresno Arts Center, Girl Scouts, PTA, Bible Study, and Sewing Club. She also loved her pets and all animals, which made her an excellent docent at the Chaffee Zoo.
Verna so enjoyed the many years spent at the family cabin at Huntington Lake. This high energy woman was almost always knitting or sewing, usually a beautiful gift for someone else. One of her dear friends once said “if Verna had enough yarn she would knit a cover for the Empire State Building”. Organic gardening was another healthy passion that put her way ahead of her time. Most of all she loved and adored her husband, family, and friends. “They all make my life really wonderful” she repeated often.
After the passing of her husband, Lee, in 2013, Verna spent the last 10 years of her life in Edmonds, Washington. She joined her daughter Janet and husband Chip in their home. As always she was quick to make friends, join a knitting group, church, and Bible study group, got to know neighbors and make friends wherever she went. She also continued her lifelong pattern of adopting stray animals. She found and tamed Hobo, a Norwegian Forest Cat that was homeless and roaming her new neighborhood. Hobo became her constant companion and entertainment.
One of Verna’s very last comments was “There’s so many people in the world to love and not enough time.” That was Verna. Please join her family remembering her lovely smile and her warm, welcoming and helpful character.
Pancreatic cancer hurried her toward heaven only nine days after diagnosis. There was mercy in this speed, only a few days of struggle and very little pain thanks to the great medical care at Swedish Hospital Edmonds Campus.
Our sweet Verna was predeceased by her parents Thomas and Jessie Palmer Catich, her husband Leland “Lee” Edman, and her three day old son Eric Mitchell Edman. She is survived by her daughters Janet (Charles “Chip”) Lind of Edmonds WA, Lynn (Nolan) Gasser of Petaluma CA, and Karen Hartung of Clovis CA. Also surviving are grandchildren: Axel (Miranda) Crossan, Camille Gasser, and Preston Gasser, her sister Aileen Martin, nephews Tom Martin and daughter Alison (Daichi) Hirata, and Dennis (Lindsey) Martin. And some great grands too: Ayla and Phoenix Crossan and Yutaka Hirata.
A service and luncheon was held on March 11th at 11am, Faith Community Church of Edmonds WA
Fresno Service: Please join Janet, Lynn, and Karen remembering Verna's lovely smile and her warm, welcoming and helpful character at a memorial luncheon Tuesday May 21st at Picadilly Inn 2300 W Shaw in Fresno from 11am-2pm (an rsvp to Verna's Facebook page will help us plan, but isn't necessary) Let's have a wonderful reunion together remembering good times.
from the Edmonds WA service by Lynn Gasser
In the cozy Huntington cabin
pine cones crackling from the hearth
she sat; her needles softly clicked
A mother's love entwined in yarn
Her graceful hands waltz with the bright colors
like a painter with a brush
Crafting warmth and comfort, for those she loved
Her voice would ring like music, so bright and full of cheer
A clever mind, a steady heart, both shining like the brightest star
Always ready to lend an ear, a hug, an idea
Animals around her, all her life, a gentle touch she had
From purring cats in the windowsill, to birds, each song she knew
From guinea pigs to chameleons, each creature she treasured, safe and sound
A splash of lipstick, a vibrant hue, as bold and bright as her spirit,
An accent to lips that spoke with care
A canvas of color and joy, she loved to wear
She never failed to brighten the room
So here is to the mother, who loved with all her might
Here is to my mother whose love, wisdom, compassion and laughter forever remain with me
A legacy of warmth and light, forever shining bright, how lucky I have been
from the Edmonds WA service, Homily by Chip Lind
Ps 90 The years of our life are seventy, perhaps in strength even eighty. Yet the sum of them is but labor and sorrow. For they pass away quickly and we are gone. So teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
The years of Verna's long and fruitful life were seventy, and then in strength eighty, and then in deep strength ninety, and then in super strength another eight and a half years to 98 ½, just a year and a half short of a century. Hers was a busy, full, industrious, fruitful, valuable, productive life of loving, laughing and giving. She gave joy to her mother Jesse and father Tom when she came into this world. She grew up giving love and companionship to her beloved younger sister Aileen in Fresno, California, and later to Aileen's two sons Tom and Dennis. She gave her love as a wife and companion to her husband Lee. She gave life and nurture to three beautiful daughters Janet, Lynn and Karen, and raised them in Fresno and the cabin at Huntington Lake in the High Sierras in the summers. She gave blood, sweat and tears to her various jobs and employments over the years whether paid or not. Hotel clerk and switchboard operator, lab tech, Girl Scout leader, zoo docent, animal rescuer, housewife, bridge partner, loyal friend, organic gardener , grandmother and adopted grandmother, aunt, knitter, card-writer. She was generous with her time and resources and always blessing people near and far. She ran a long marathon of a good life race and finished strong.
This sweet, gracious, white-haired woman was my mother-in-law. I was most fortunate. She gave me a wonderful wife, her eldest daughter Janet. I was honored to know her for the past 29 years and experience her kindness, generosity and hospitality. The last ten years of her life she picked up stakes from central California and joined us here in Edmonds. She was compassionate even to fictional characters. One of my days off a few years ago I was at home in my man cave and came out to the kitchen to make some lunch. Verna was watching TV in the living room and at some point said, “Oh good heavens!” I kept working on my sandwich. Then she exclaimed “Oh that's terrible!” I figured she was watching Judge Judy or Hoarders or something. Then there was a really loud “Now that is absolutely horrible!” I hollered from the kitchen -”Verna, what in the world are you watching?” “Uh well this poor man who served our country came to see his old buddy from the war in this small town but his friend had already died so he was looking for a place to eat and then the mean sheriff harassed him for being a vagrant and so forth and then threw him in jail. Well they were beating him up and he had flashbacks of Vietnam and then he broke out of the jail and now he's out in the woods and they're looking for him.” I stuck my head around the corner-
“Verna, are you watching Rambo?” “I don't know; who's in it?” “Sylvester Stallone.” “Well, apparently I must be then.” So now I'm thinking to myself I've got the coolest mother-in-law in the whole world. So I added a bowl of popcorn to my sandwich for lunch and joined Verna for a Rambo First Blood matinee on a rainy afternoon on my day off. And even though Verna was very worried, the bad guys didn't get John Rambo. The Lord turned the tables and he got them. Verna and I were both very happy. It was a wonderful time of bonding for both of us.
Well now she's gone and I miss her, as we all do. Her long pilgrimage is over. She has entered her well-deserved eternal rest in the better country where our hearts all long for. She's graduated from here and is starting a new chapter there in the heavenly kingdom of God's Son, whom she loved and served. She's in happy reunion with family and friends and pets who have gone before. She is safely home with Jesus her Lord and Savior. Amen