Sybil Mae Zentz
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Sybil Mae Zentz was someone you were privileged to know. When she passed away on November 18, 2021, we lost not only our beloved mother but a true friend. With her bright, gentle spirit, even at 101 years, she was as she always had been: kind, generous, and curious to know how you were doing It is really hard to imagine life without her but she would remind us to carry on with a smile.
The youngest of five children, Sybil was born March 1, 1920, to Laura Gilroy Dreher and Otto Ferdinand Dehrer. Mom grew up in Wenatchee, Washington and graduated from high school there. During the Great Depression, she worked a number of jobs to help support her family including packing apples, ushering at a local theater and then later selling cosmetics at a Seattle department store. Pretty, smart and good-humored, it's not hard to imagine that she turned more than a few heads. She certainly caught the eye of Clifford Zentz in 1939. Four years later, at the end of World War II, she married the young Marine when he returned home from the South Pacific. During their sixty-four years of marriage they made homes in California, North Dakota, Montana and Washington. Most of their life together was spent in Montana where they raised wheat and cattle near Billings before retiring to Anacortes, Washington. They also raised two sons and three daughters. Our parents were exceptionally active and creative, and we learned a lot by just watching them. The most important thing we knew was their love.
Mom will be remembered for her sunny disposition, positive outlook and ready sense of humor as well as her adventurous spirit. She loved sports and walked or ran regularly long before it was popular. She was also a beautiful swimmer and valued member of a synchronized swimming group at the Billings YMCA. Outside of our home, Mom volunteered many hours as a hospital Pink Lady and assistant cook at our elementary school.
Mom took great pride and pleasure in providing a comfortable home for us. Always excited to try something new, she enjoyed cooking, sewing, gardening and whatever else was necessary to make our home the place to be. Birthdays were celebrated with a made-from-scratch cake and it was a delight to arrive home from school periodically to find every horizontal kitchen surface smothered with fresh maple bars. From hand-sewn dresses for her daughters to gift plates filled with myriad homemade holiday candies, she was continually busy doing things for others. Mom adored her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She loved any and all occasions with them from Halloween trick-or-treating to a lively game of pinochle and everything in between. She relished entertaining family and friends, and her delectable meals were never complete without a generous scoop . . . or two, of ice cream.
She was a city girl, but living on a ranch as she did, Mom learned to ride horses, drive tractors and trucks, and could butcher a chicken with the best of them. Whether it was mechanical work, remodeling a room, upholstering a chair or just offering encouragement, she worked tirelessly beside Dad on whatever job was at hand. She personified multi-tasking before the term was invented and rarely complained.
Sybil was such a fine role model in many ways, but certainly was most impressive while demonstrating the art of aging gracefully. Filled with style and dignity, hers was a very long life, well-lived. She was preceded in death by her young son Jeffrey, husband Cliff, her parents, and all four of her siblings. Remaining to cherish her legacy are son Patrick (Suzie), daughters Debra (Lowell), Marlene and Christene. She will also be forever loved by her seven grandchildren and their families.
Sybil will be laid to rest next to Cliff at Fernhill Cemetery in Anacortes. A celebration of her life will be deferred until the Skagit Valley is in full bloom with tulips, one of her favorite times of year. Though difficult, she would be pleased to know that we are carrying on with a smile . . . as she would have wished.
To share memories of Sybil, please sign the online guestbook at www.evanschapel.com/obituary/sybil-zentz