Paula Pimentel
I grew up with my sister, Thea Wickstrom in Tacoma, Washington. We enjoyed a wonderful childhood with skiing, swimming and tennis at the Tacoma Lawn Tennis Club. Thea had ballet lessons and horseback riding lessons, as did I. We had a cabin in Packwood, Washington where we spent time with family and friends, played ping pong and relaxed. We skied at White Pass.
Thea drove a Chevy Nova, giving me rides to school some days when I attended Stadium High School. Thea was a sweet person who wanted to help others. She studied early childhood education and worked for quite a while as a nurse’s aide in a nursing home.
Thea had an amazing memory and would recall friends and acquaintances’ names even if we had not seen them in many years. Thea was a huge support to my mother in her later years, often helping with cooking, cleaning, laundry and anything my mom needed help with. Thea and my mom had a close relationship and it was just five years ago, almost exactly since our mother passed. It was too hard for my sister to continue without the tremendous love, support and dedication to help each other that my mom and my sister shared.
I will miss Thea very much, her smile, kindness and occasional profoundness.