Eleanor Valeria Tingley was born on May 29th, 1925 to Frank and Valeria Ebertowski on the family farm near Grafton, North Dakota. She was the youngest of eight siblings: Frank, Gehard, Eddie, Leonard, Emily, Florence and Josephine. Eleanor spoke fondly of growing up on the farm and all the fun a big, boisterous family brought.

During WWII, Eleanor relocated to Davenport, Iowa and lived with some of her older siblings to help with the war effort, working at International Harvester. After the war, she returned home and eventually moved to Seattle, WA with the plan of attending beauty school.

In Seattle she met her future husband, Douglas Tingley. He was a handsome young sailor full of energy and excitement. Mom loved adventure and together they traveled the world, first with the Navy and later in retirement. They visited Japan, Korea, Australia, Germany, Austria, London and Italy among other places. They married in 1948 and were together for 52 years. Together they raised three daughters, Marilyn, Dianne and Jan. After retirement from the Navy they lived in the San Francisco Bay Area and Auburn, WA. Douglas passed in January of 2000.

Eleanor and Doug were wonderful entertainers. Their house was always a place to gather, visit, eat and have great conversation. Eleanor would often come home from work and discover that Doug was bringing someone home for dinner. She always took it in stride and welcomed everyone with open arms. They also enjoyed going out for dinner and weekend trips to Reno.

Eleanor was a devout Catholic and an exceptionally strong woman with a great sense of fun and humor. She was an avid gardener of flowers and vegetables. Family meant everything to her. Eleanor passed peacefully at the home of her eldest daughter. She is survived by three daughters, their spouses, four grandchildren, one great grandson and many nieces and nephews. We will all miss her sauerkraut and spareribs.