Obituary

Harriet Ann (Rader) Allen, 80, passed away peacefully in her sleep at her home of Bellingham, Washington on July 2, 2013 from complications of Alzheimers disease.
Harriet was born in Walla Walla, Washington on February 7, 1933 to Ralph W. and Ruth (Pettett) Rader, who farmed and ranched in the Walla Walla area from the 1920s into 1960s. The home ranch was located on Lewis Peak Road in the foothills of the Blue Mountains to the east of Walla Walla. Harriet and her sister Joan lived on the ranch year-round until school age when they moved to Walla Walla to live with their Grandparents during the winters. Summers were still spent on the ranch and Harriet was her mother’s constant companion, doing farm chores and driving to town for equipment parts and for groceries to feed the farm crews. These were the years of the Great Depression and then World War II.
Harriet graduated from Walla Walla High School in 1951 and from Stanford University in 1955 with a degree in International Relations. After a time teaching school in Redwood City, California, she began a 25-year career overseas with the Department of Defense Dependent Schools. She taught at US Air Force, Army, and Navy bases in Taipei, Taiwan; Rota, Spain; Karlsruhe, Germany; Upper Heyford, England; and in Mons, Belgium. Harriet was a great traveler and had many adventures touring the worlds continents. She also enjoyed antique collecting and was an avid reader.
Harriet retired to Bellingham, Washington in 1989 where she made new friends and thoroughly enjoyed Northwest living. She could be seen daily with her Yellow Labradors (Tom and Brady) on local trails and beaches and often visited her sister Joan and family who lived just across the Canadian border. Harriet continued travelling and with Joan took a variety of Elderhostel and genealogical research expeditions.
Harriet touched many lives as a teacher and friend, and will be dearly remembered. She is survived by her sister, Carolyn Joan (Rader) Wilson, of Delta, B.C.; nephews Ralph Wilson (Rose) of Richland, Washington and Colin Wilson (Lauren) of Delta, British Columbia; and great nieces and nephews Kirsten, Brent, Benjamin, Rebecca and Solomon. Harriet is preceded in death by her parents, Ralph W. Rader and Ruth (Pettett) Rader of Walla Walla.
Burial will occur at a private family ceremony at Mountain View Cemetery in Walla Walla. No service is planned in Bellingham; however, friends are invited to share memories at www.farewelltributes.com.
The family of Harriet Allen thanks the staff of Senior Support Services, Bellingham; Visiting Angels Bellingham; and the Whatcom Hospice Foundation for their support to Harriet in her final years.