Zelna "Zee" A. Edwards Harris' Obituary
On the Red Top
Zelna “Zee” Edwards Harris began her life journey on December 8, 1925, in Clay City, Washington. The fourth born of six children, Zee and her family lived in Clay City, a 600 acre outcropping of red clay on Mount Rainer, just outside of Eatonville. Zee’s father was a foreman at the brick plant. They lived in company housing during the Depression years. The kilns were fired by coal, then oil, which proved to be unhealthy, and so the family relocated to Longbranch, Washington, where her father built a house on five acres of her grandfather’s property.
Zee attended Vaughan High School, but as a junior, she moved to Aberdeen, to serve as a governess for a pharmacist and his family. She tended to the care of two children and attended school in Aberdeen. Homesick, Zee returned home after one year and graduated with honors from Vaughn.
Marriage and Family
Zelna’s first husband worked as a fireman at the port of Tacoma. Together they shared the birth of Zee’s first daughter, Cathy. Zee remarried in 1957, two years after the passing of her first husband. Lawrence Harris worked at the Richfield Gas Station and, when the two started talking, Lawrence’s mother, Goldie, encouraged him to ask her out. They were married when Cathy was four and a half years old, and Lawrence officially adopted Zelna’s first daughter at the age of five. Lawrence and Zee then provided Cathy with two sisters, DeLynn and Carla, and the Harris family was complete.
Working Woman
Zelna worked in several positions before and after her full-time work as housewife and mother. She worked as a clerk during WWII, at the Bremerton Navy Shipyard; in a secretarial capacity for New Era Cleaners, in Tacoma; and then later as a secretary for Western Farmers Co-op. As a housewife and mother, Zee cared for her family, spoiling her children with Casey Jones’ songs, card-playing and sandwiches complete with happy faces. Motherhood also included establishing moral values. Her daughter recalls one occasion as a child, when she stole a belt from K-Mart and tried to convince her mother that she had found it. Zee promptly drove her back to the store to return the item and make her daughter apologize to the manager. Much of Zee’s time, however, was spent cleaning up from one weekend’s camping trip and preparing for the next.
The Camping Clan
The Harris family spent much of their recreational time camping, first in tents and later in either a camper or cabin. The family camped locally in almost every state park in Washington and quite a few state parks in Oregon, Idaho, and California. Zee would make the girls “individuals,” personalized meals she would keep warm for them to enjoy, once they reached their campsite after the long ride in the camper over the cab of the truck. The girls would communicate by intercom and read comic books during the journey. Upon arrival, while the girls enjoyed their “individuals,” mom and dad would set up camp, and the weekend of fun would begin. Campfires, swimming, cards and games would mark the enjoyment of each weekend. For longer summer vacations, Zee would craft outfits for each of the girls so they were adorned for the holiday. Memorable vacations for the girls included a trip to Disneyland in California and a camping trip that included scaring other members of the family with a bear hide over a stump in the woods!
Joy: A Growing Family
Zee’s first grandchild was born on Lawrence’s birthday, and to celebrate, the two travelled afar, from relative to friend, in search of anyone at home with whom they could share their exciting news. Four more grandchildren and three great-grandchildren followed, providing great joy in Zee’s life. Zee and Lawrence would attend sports events, travel to celebrate birthdays, and host parties, especially on holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving.
From A to Zee
There was always a lot that Zee found to keep herself busy. At one point in her life she sewed prom dresses for the girls and worked to sew personalized monogram signatures inside the fur coats customers purchased from her sister’s furrier. She canned fruit and baked pies, created apple custard desserts and decorated sugar cookies. She enjoyed crosswords, Yahtzee and coffee with neighbors and friends. She volunteered her time with Awanas, a church program for children, and was part of the PTA and Camp Fire organizations. Zee was always thinking of others. She often would go out of her way to care for those in need, whether driving friends for groceries or purchasing and decorating Christmas trees for neighbors.
Leaving a Loving Legacy
In 2005, Zee wrote a letter to her daughters to let them know that all arrangements for her passing were in order. She leaves a legacy of generosity and love that will live on through her family. Zelna passed on September 19, 2012. She was preceded in death by her husband, Lawrence Harris. Her brother Sherman, daughters Cathy (Jim), DeLynn (Paul) and Carla (Don), grandchildren Kirsten, Dustin, Britta, Lauren and Bryce and great grandchildren Addison, Mikhail and Kayde will never forget her.
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