Beulah Marie Gibble of Arlington, WA passed away on Wednesday, November 27, 2019 at the age of 85.

Beulah was born in 1934 to Katie and Joe Bertolino at home, a typical Montana family farm, four miles from Roberts, MT.

She graduated Roberts High School in 1952 and left rural Montana to attend the University of Washington School of Nursing in Seattle, where she graduated with training and friendships that lasted a lifetime.

In 1957, she married Arnold Gene Gibble, her husband of 53 years. They eventually settled on a small farm in Arlington where they balanced career and family in ways seldom seen today.

Beulah, a registered nurse, worked at Seattle’s Harborview Hospital, Cascade Valley Hospital and Arlington Manor before she was recruited to direct the Arlington Convalescent Center when it opened in 1971. There, she gained a family of staff and patients who she worked with, advocated for and loved. Many Arlington High students were guided to healthcare careers through the occupational learning program she launched. Beulah retired in 1988 and served on both the Cascade Valley Hospital Senior Services and Arlington High Health Occupation advisory boards. She also volunteered at the Marysville Information Center, cared for her grandchildren, and cared for her husband at home when his health declined.

Beulah enjoyed the land and wildlife in all its forms, from camping in the mountains to clam digging at the beach, from feeding summer hummingbirds to watching snow geese take flight in winter. She enjoyed sly humor and digging in the garden, she typically rooted for the underdog, and many times gave emergency medical aid to neighbors and strangers alike.

Beulah’s strength and independence was both remarkable and vexing. Despite or, perhaps, because of it, she was cherished by a broad and varied group of people whose friendships and kindnesses were essential to her well-being.

Beulah is survived by four daughters, Margie (Mike) Brisbin, Shirley (Steven) Sprague, Melissa Gibble and Patrice (Robert) Bunge; grandchildren, Wesley Brown, Emily Brown, Katie Bunge and Matthew Bunge; great-grandson, Jayden Brown; and numerous beloved nephews and nieces and their exceptional families.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Gene; much-loved brother, Peter Bertolino; sister, Donna Chavers; mother and father and a whole host of extended family and friends who converged to form a community that shaped who she became, and with whom she will be happy to reunite.

In lieu of funeral services, a celebration of life will be held in early 2020.