She’s fed us for years — at the Veterans Memorial Museum, the Washington Hotel, the Bethel Church, a Civil War re-enactment in a field — and Saturday night caterer Catrina “Trina” Gardipee again cooked delectable dishes for 400.
But this time, the event held at The Loft in Chehalis — Catering to Catrina — focused on raising money to help the Adna native as she wages her high-stakes battle against stage 4 ovarian cancer.
I looked around the crowded tables and thought what a testimony this sold-out event is to Gardipee’s service and kindness in Lewis County, and the community’s love for one of its own.
“I have been so touched and so humbled by our community!” Gardipee said Sunday. “It was such a blessing seeing so many dear friends. My prayer is that the Lord richly blesses each one for their kindness and generosity!”
A line snaked outside the building as people waited for bidding numbers. Inside, friends caught up while wandering among nearly 200 donated silent auction items.
While totals aren’t available yet, the live auction alone brought in about $10,000, with a bronze elk crafted by talented local artist Jim Stafford fetching the highest bid of $2,100.
One event perk, besides giving Gardipee a hug before filling a plate with tasty treats, was meeting the lovely women who shared our table — Betty, Ester, Marlys and Myrna.
They met Gardipee during the decade she ran the Bethel Church kitchen.
When a friend is diagnosed with cancer, or another dreaded disease, it’s so easy to feel helpless.
Thanks to Catrina’s friends, the community enjoyed the opportunity to help a friend in need.
“Oh, my goodness, this has been such a journey and many people have been so, so helpful,” Gardipee said. “You know the Lord tells us to bear one another’s burdens, and I am in a place where that has become so dear to me.”
I’m blessed to know Gardipee and play a small part in catering to Catrina.
A “Catering to Catrina” cookbook, which was compiled by Gardipee’s friends as a fundraiser for Gardipee and her husband, Harvey, is available for $20 at Adna Floral.
Farewell to a Friend
I don’t face a lot of physical hazards in my job as a personal historian, but it’s always heartbreaking when someone I’ve grown to know and love while listening to their stories dies.
That’s how I feel now about the death of Sarah Ciranny Zopolos, a 94-year-old woman born in Tono who grew up in Centralia and later worked at Boeing in Seattle during World War II.
She died April 18 in Kennewick, where she had moved to be near her daughter.
I was honored when Zopolos hired me to help capture the stories of her life and publish them in a book called “Laboring in Love.”
Zopolos, whose parents both immigrated to the United States from Falerna, Italy, recalled with an Italian accent how her mother waited on the porch each day for her two daughters to return from Fords Prairie School.
“What word did you learn today?” she always asked, eager to learn the language of her adopted home.
Zopolos also spoke of marrying her husband, Harry, whose parents emigrated from Greece, and building their Chehalis Avenue home.
They paid for the lumber and supplies as they built it, rather than borrowing money.
During the January 1950 blizzard, she recalled that a pile of snow grew inside their home, blown through the hole where they planned to put a doorknob.
Her funeral is Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Chehalis United Methodist Church.
During interviews, both Zopolos and WWII veteran Harry Hokanson, who died April 7 at 98, shared delightful stories about visits to the Southwest Washington Fair. Their stories are included in the history book, available at the fair office and the Lewis County Historical Museum.
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Julie McDonald, a personal historian from Toledo, may be reached at memoirs@chaptersoflife.com.
