Harriett Louise Cox Easley

Harriett Louise Cox Easley, 87, died peacefully in her sleep Feb. 2, 2010, at home in Palmer. She was born in Robinson, Ill., on Feb. 26, 1922.

She first became a resident of Alaska in December 1962 and first lived in Anchorage with her husband, Jack D. Easley, and their five children.

Harriett graduated from Springfield High School in Springfield, Ill., and later attended DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind., for two years. She then graduated from the St. Lukes School of Nursing in Chicago as a registered nurse. She worked as a professional registered nurse in Champaign, Ill., Pasco County, Fla., and Anchorage. She was the shift supervisor at Providence Hospital at the time of the 1964 earthquake on Good Friday. She and Jack first met in the seventh grade in Springfield, Ill., and used to kid about marring during recess; however, nine years later Harriett and Jack were married, and for 65 years spent their lives together traveling the world while raising their family.

Harriett’s main hobby was genealogy, and she traced and proved her lineage beyond 50 generations and more than 125 coats of arms. She influenced her husband in researching his own lineage that far back also.

While her husband was overseas in the Pacific, she worked as a nurse at a hospital in Champaign. When her bomber pilot husband returned from the Pacific arena, they went to Panama for a while and went farther south to Colombia, South America, for a year and returned to the United States to have their first and second children, Michael J. Easley and Scott P. Easley. After Jack received his professional civil engineers license, they returned to South America, this time to Venezuela, where Jack and his brother Ned formed an engineering and construction company. They returned to the states in 1955. A daughter, Candice Anita Easley, was born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, which gave her dual citizenship. As the family grew, she and the family moved to jobs in Florida, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Nevada and back to Alaska eventually.

Harriett was an acting member and served many distinguished roles of several societies such as The National Society Daughter’s of the American Revolution — 1607-1776, The National Society Daughter’s of Colonial Dames XVII Century, The National Society United States Daughter’s of 1812, The National Society of the Descendants Colonial Clergy, The Dames of the Court of Honor, The Daughters of Colonial Wars, The Society of New England Women and the Order of the Crown of Charlemagne.

Harriett spoke Spanish and Jack several other languages. The boys soon learned Spanish as well.

Harriett and Jack attended the United Protestant (Presbyterian Church) — The Church of a Thousand Logs in Palmer. By her request there are to no services.

Harriett is survived by her husband, Jack D. Easley of Palmer; children, Michael J. Easley of Palmer, Scott P. Easley of Anchorage, Candice A. Easley of Wasilla, Steven C. Easley of Anchorage and Jacquelyn D. Dauphin of Anchorage; 11 grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.

Arrangements by Alaskan Heritage Memorial Chapel & Crematory, Wasilla Chapel.