Charlotte Treadwell Griffith

CHARLOTTE TREADWELL GRIFFITH (descendant of one of the valley’s original pioneer families) Charlotte (Treadwell) Griffith, passed away on Sunday, September 26, 2010 at a care facility on Pioneer Avenue in Cashmere, Washington. She is being interred in the Cashmere Cemetery near her parents and adjacent to her husband Roys. All four of them are buried within sight of Charlotte’s old family home on Pioneer Avenue where she was born November 25, 1913. In lieu of a funeral, gifts may be made to the Cancer Society or your favorite charity. Charlotte must have truly been from “sturdy Pioneer Stock”, because she had defied the odds and bounced back from several life threatening illnesses over the years. She beat cancer twice. She had several heart attacks over the years. Her second heart attacks occurred 15 years ago. This one finally slowed her down enough that you could (almost) keep up with her on her daily walk. The Treadwell’s were one of the very first pioneer families to settle in the Wenatchee and Cashmere Valleys. Her father came to Cashmere with his parents and siblings in 1887. Their initial home was built of logs and served as both the local Post Office and the stage coach stop. After the railroad reached the area, the Treadwell’s bought 160 acres of surplus railroad land at a cost of only $10 per acre! The Cashmere airport and High School now sit on parts of this land along Pioneer Avenue. Charlotte was an elementary school teacher who last taught at Washington Elementary School in Wenatchee. She is remembered by her students for the heavy doses of art , music and dance she taught them. Charlotte was married to Roys G. Griffith who preceded her in death by nearly 30 years. Charlotte always wanted to travel and see the world, but husband Roys preferred to spend every vacation at the 1930’s era family cabin on Lake Wenatchee. The Christmas after Roys died, Charlotte gave her son Joel and his family tickets to Hawaii. This gift was rejected by the kids who scolded “No! You and Dad saved this money, so YOU should take the trips”. And boy did she listen well! She took two extensive world trips almost every year. She travelled widely, even visiting places like Russia, Ukraine and China during the Cold War when few outsiders travelled there. She left a huge stack of travel scrapbooks filled with fading photos. But until the end, when Charlotte reminisced about her world travels, her thoughts were not faded like her photos, but still vivid and exciting. The Family Tree is small, but close. Surviving relatives are one son, Joel, his wife Vicki, and their two daughters: Heather and her sons Zach and Austin; and daughter Amber, her husband Tom and their Sammy, our so-called GrandDog. Charlotte was an elder in the Wenatchee First Presbyterian Church, a member of DAR and various charities. Her favorite bible verse was Psalms 23. Her favorite quote was: “I shall pass through this world but once. If there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do, let me do it now; for I shall not pass this way again”. Charlotte penned this final thought for her own obituary: “I have enjoyed my life here on earth and hope it will continue - like yet another trip to a foreign country..........” --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tributes

Charlotte Treadwell Griffith

November 25, 1913 - September 26, 2010