Anne Lindeman passed away in her sleep on Tuesday morning, Jan. 2, 2024, at Bishop Place in Pullman, with son Glen by her side and her cat lying on her lap.
Born June 25, 1921, in Western Washington, she grew up on an original homestead in the Little Hanaford Valley, 4 miles northeast of Centralia in Lewis County.
Life on the farmstead beckoned back to pioneer times, with oil lamps, wood stoves, well water and no electricity. Travel by foot and horseback were yet common, with automobiles just beginning to arrive in this rural area. Anne thoroughly enjoyed farm life. During the hard times of the Great Depression, however, the family moved to nearby Chehalis in 1936.
This new urban setting inspired Anne to follow new clothing fashions, which she adhered to for the rest of her life. Following graduation from Chehalis High School in 1939, Anne attended Wilson’s Modern Business College in Seattle, rooming with five other young Chehalis women. After graduating in 1940, she returned to Chehalis to work for the National Youth Administration, providing assistance for high school and college students completing their education and learning trade skills. Later, she transferred to the Seattle/Tacoma NYA headquarters.
In July 1942, Anne married Melvin C. Lindeman, of Onalaska, whom she had met at a party when in high school. Mel was then stationed with the U.S. Army in Texas during the early part of World War II. Anne followed him to Texas and worked at a Houston secretarial agency. In early 1945, Mel shipped overseas and Anne returned to her parent’s home in Chehalis.
The war years and the 1940s proved trying for Anne. Her brother, Glen, a merchant mariner, died in July 1942 during the Battle of the Atlantic. Then, in 1945, with Anne pregnant with her first child, husband Mel participated in horrific combat on Okinawa. After Mel’s discharge on Christmas Day, 1945, they resettled in the Chehalis/Centralia area. Anne’s only other sibling, Bill, died in 1949, as did her only aunt and namesake (Anne). These losses probably contributed to Anne’s constant kindness, politeness and understanding of other persons.
In 1955, she began long-time service as chief deputy to the Lewis County Clerk. Anne especially enjoyed working with young attorneys, helping them to file the superior court’s administrative and financial proceedings in the clerk’s office. These tasks were not taught in law school.
After retirement, Mel and Anne moved to Dayton, Washington, in 1986 to begin restoring a grand Victorian house dating from 1903. In 1997, they relocated to Walla Walla, where Mel passed away in 2000. In 2017, at age 96, Anne went to Bishop Place in Pullman, to be near her son, Glen, and his wife, Myrna.
A long-time community volunteer, she was involved with P.E.O., Soroptimists, a board providing homes for disabled persons, Centralia Girl Scouts, a credit union board, the Dayton Historical Museum Board, the Fort Walla Walla Museum gift shop and Walla Walla’s Sunshine Club. Always a cat lover, she also enjoyed collecting antiques and traveling in the Western states and to Hawaii. Fortunate to mostly have led a long healthy life, Anne only experienced congestive heart failure in her last two months.
Anne was preceded in death by her parents, George D. and Laura J. Wyley; brothers, Glen and Bill Wyley; and husband, Mel. Survivors include her son, Glen Lindeman (Myrna) in Pullman; grandchildren, Lif, Colin and Kendra Lindeman; and a great-granddaughter. Also, son, George Lindeman (Pat), of Centralia, and step-grandchildren, Beth Anne Jones and Melissa McNally, and their families. Anne was always grateful for her dear friends at Bishop Place in Pullman, and in Dayton, Walla Walla and Centralia.
No service will be held at Anne’s request. In coming months, the family will gather in Walla Walla for Anne’s internment next to husband Mel at Blue Mountain Memorial Gardens. Corbeill Funeral Home in Pullman is in charge of local arrangements, www.corbeillfuneralhomes.com.
