Eileen Frances Luby (Nee Ralph) Obituary (1920 - 2019)

Born August 10, 1920 in Seattle, WA; died December 22, 2019. She was the middle child of William Francis Ralph of Kent, England and Lillian Templeton of Belfast, Northern Ireland. She was preceded in death by Donald, her husband of 61 years; and her second son, Michael. She is survived by her sons, Donald (Christine), James, Patrick (Ranjini), and Joseph; and her daughters Catherine Mooney, Margaret Wells, Mary Burdick, and Barbara Wakefield (John). There are also many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews who will all miss her charm and wit. Eileen spent her youth traipsing up and down the counter balance on Queen Anne hill, attending Warren Avenue Elementary and then Queen Anne High School. In high school she took great pride in being advanced through several half years such that she ended up in the same class as her older brother, much to his chagrin. Graduating in 1938, her ambition was to find happiness. She went on to Business College and worked for a short time before meeting a farm boy from Minnesota. They married in 1940 and Eileen embarked on her quest for happiness: becoming a mother and raising a family. She managed the household, did the cooking, baking, laundry etc. She created lovely memories with her ability to squirrel away presents on layaway and her talent for baking an array of holiday cookies. Her faith was an important element in her life. At St. Alphonsus Parish where she had children enrolled in the school for 29 years she was an inveterate volunteer: Altar Society, St. Vincent de Paul Society, working in the school kitchen, guiding children through brownies, camp fire, and scouting. She also volunteered her time at Children's Hospital. Vacations were often spent camping in the Cascades. There she organized the camp and cooked for the entire family over an open fire. That led to her declaration years later that she would only go camping at the Hilton. She did love to travel: Hawaii, Ireland, Europe. On one occasion in Florence, Italy, her purse was stolen. Found the next day, she reveled in discovering that the thieves had not found $200 she had hidden in a secret compartment. She also loved trips to Reno and Tulalip. The luck of the Irish was with her as she often won at slots or took home the prizes from raffles. Recitation of the Rosary will be held Friday, January 10th at 7pm at Hoffer, Fisher & Harvey Chapel 508 N 36th St., Seattle, 98103 Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, January 11th at 11am at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church 5816 15th Ave NW, Seattle, 98107 Hoffner Fisher & Harvey Guestbook at harveyfuneral.com To send a flower arrangement in memory of Eileen Frances Luby (Nee Ralph), please click here to visit our sympathy store.