Obituary of Thelma Banner

Thelma Banner, 89, loving mother of Linda, Dave, Mike and Brad, went to be with the Lord March 22, 2008, after struggling many years with Parkinson's Disease.Thelma was born in Seattle on April 22, 1918. Her early years were spent in logging camps along Hood Canal, including Phoenix Logging Company¹s Camp One, a camp near Dow Mountain and Camp Two, between Lakes Melbourn and Osborn. She enjoyed swimming in the lakes and walking to Lilliwaup to swim and buy ice cream. At thirteen, Thelma moved to Shelton to attend high school. After graduating in 1935, she spent a year in Tacoma, followed by a year in Seattle where she attended the University of Washington. On returning home, she took a job as secretary and book keeper for Charlie Cole at the Shelton Gas Company. While there, she met her husband-to-be, Bennie Banner. She recalls with affection, "One day he came into the office, pushed my head down on my desk, and said he would take me out when I turned twenty-one." During those years, Thelma began attending church. Since the accidental death of her young brother, she had often wondered about Heaven and what happens after you die. Her parents had bought her a Bible, but years later she said, "It wasn't until I heard the gospel preached that I learned we are all sinners in God's eyes, and need to accept the Lord Jesus as our Savior. I did that and found the answers to my searching. This faith has upheld me through many difficult times." Bennie and Thelma were married October 7, 1939. Their daughter Linda was born September, 1941, and six months later, Bennie left for the war as Second Lieutenant in the Army Air Force. Following the war and Bennie¹s return, they had three more children and became involved in Sunday School, Scouts and youth groups. In 1968 the family moved to a waterfront home on Hammersley Inlet, where they enjoyed country living, gardening and car-camping trips until Bennie¹s death in 1985. Since that time, Thelma remained involved in Bible study groups until her Parkinsons disease made it too difficult to live on her own. Her last years were spent at Alpine Way assisted living facility. A Memorial Service is planned for March 25, 2008, 12:30 PM at the First Baptist Church in Shelton with a reception following. Memorial donations may be made to SIM for work in Ethiopia or Sudan. Address: SIM-USA PO Box 7900 Charlotte, NC 28241 Please use this web site to record some of your memories that would be nice for the family to remember and pass on to children and grandchildren. They can be recorded by clicking on “View Guestbook” below: