Andrea Edna Skinner

a longtime and well loved resident of Bainbridge Island died peacefully March 26 at Martha & Mary Health & Rehab Center in Poulsbo, WA. She was 95. Andrea was born in Bellevue, WA on November 18, 1913 to Nell and Dwight Skinner. She settled with her family at Tolo on Bainbridge Island in 1918, moving to Battle Point in 1926.Andrea attended Manzanita school and graduated from Bainbridge High School in 1931. She moved to Seattle where she completed secretarial school and worked during the Depression years.Andrea went together with her close childhood friend and neighbor to the Winslow dock on the day residents of Japanese ancestry were transported to internment camps. She assisted closing out their home at Battle Point and stayed in close touch until Andrea's passing.Andrea moved to San Louis Obispo, CA in 1942 where she was very successful selling war bonds. She later resided in San Francisco, returning to Seattle in 1945 where she volunteered a short stint in the Coast Guard Auxiliary.Andrea worked for Fredrick & Nelson's Human Resources for 8 years prior to joining the Seattle Gas Company in 1953. She moved to the new Bellevue Regional Office in 1958 and was named Office Manager. Andrea returned to the Seattle corporate office for Washington Natural Gas (later to become Puget Sound Energy) and was promoted to Manager of Industrial Billing prior to retiring in 1978 as a Gas Dispatcher in Engineering. Andrea was active in professional business women's organizations as an officer and a mentor during her career.Andrea built her home on Lake Sammamish in 1951, moving to Mercer Island some years later. She returned to the Skinner homestead at Battle Point in 1976 to prepare for her retirement and enjoy her many friends and neighbors on Bainbridge Island and in Kitsap County.Andrea loved hiking and camping in the Cascades, riding horseback in the mountains of Colorado and Montana and fishing in Alaska and Canada. She traveled to Antarctica on a scientific research ship after retirement. Andrea can be described best by a sign she hung that read "I'd rather wake-up in nowhere, then any city in the world."Andrea was a competitive bridge player, avid reader and loved watching Mariners baseball with her friends. She was a gifted piano player and a remarkable story-teller, aided by her photographic mind.Andrea is survived by her sister Patricia Russell of Bainbridge Island, nephews David Russell (Lisa) of Seattle, Matt Russell (Kate) of Miles City, MT, Bob Russell (Jill) of Bainbridge Island; and great-nieces Janna and Jannell Russell of Bainbridge Island, Naomi Hubert of Seattle and great-nephew of Jeremy Umeno of Bainbridge Island.A celebration of life will be held at Bob and Jill Russell's home on Bainbridge Island, to be announced. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Bainbridge Island Library.