Dorothy Audrey Nahanee Almojuela

93, died peacefully in her sleep early November 6, 2011. A member of the Squamish Nation, she was born in North Vancouver, BC, Canada on January 25, 1918, the second child of seven born to Edward Gilbert Nahanee and Margaret Elizabeth Joe. She grew up on the Squamish Mosquito Creek Reserve on the north shore of Burrard Inlet. She attended St. Paul's Boarding School for Indians as a day student through the eighth grade, but was unable to continue her education into high school in order to care for her mother who suffered from Parkinson's disease.In the early summer of 1942, at the age of 24, for her first time she joined her grandmother and other close relations on their annual summer migration to Bainbridge Island to pick strawberries. There she met and fell in love with the strawberry farmer, Thomas Corpuz Almojuela, who had migrated from the Phillipines a dozen years earlier and who rented land on Bainbridge and started berry farming. In July of that same "Summer of 42" they married. In the late 1940's they bought their land on Day Road. They cleared the land and built the home themselves with the help of Dorothy's younger brother, Harold Nahanee. They planted their strawberries on the land by their new home. She and Tom lived the rest of their lives on Bainbridge Island and became the proud parents of children. Despite her own lack of a high school education, she tirelessly emphasized the importance of studying and hard work to her children. Her efforts enabled her to take great pride in that all the children were Honor Society students at Bainbridge high school and several excelled in their athletic achievements in high school and beyond. She took pride in that all her children were college graduates with three earning post graduate degrees and until her last breath was amazed that each of her children was able to fund his and her own education. Dorothy was always grateful for the help and support of the many relatives and friends of the family on Bainbridge enabling her and her family to achieve their dreams and most important of all, an immense appreciation for their happiness and for what they have.Dorothy and Tom were married for 54 years, until his death in 1994. In addition to her husband, she is preceded in death by her brothers Raymond, Arnold, Edward, and Harold. She is survived by her brother James and sister Patricia; her children, Thomas and his wife Lorena of Santiago, Chile, Colleen of Bainbridge Island, Edward and his wife Diane of Silverdale, Benito and his wife Marie of Palm Springs, CA, and Denise of Kingston. She has six grandchildren, Anthony Neal, Justin Neal, Michelle Koppin, Monica Gaertner, Mariela Almojuela, and Tommy Almojuela. Dorothy has three great-grandchildren Dylan Neal and Owen and Simon Gaertner.A vigil will be held at St. Olaf's Catholic Church in Poulsbo on Thursday, November 10th at 7PM and the Funeral Mass at St Olaf's will be at 1PM on Friday, November 11th. The Rite of Committal will immediately follow the Mass and it will be at Kane Cemetery in Port Madison on Bainbridge Island. Immediately afterwards a reception will be held at the House of the Awakened in Suquamish.In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Hospice of Kitsap County, P.O. Box 3416, Silverdale, WA 98383. Please sign the online Guest Book for the family.