Shirley Jean Schultheis

Shirley Jean (Grieser) Schultheis, 95, died peacefully at Bishop Place Senior Living in Pullman, on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Born July 10, 1928 in Genesee, Idaho, to Martin and Julalia (Esser) Grieser, she was the second of five children. She came from humble beginnings on the farm, helping alongside her family to bring in the harvest and make ends meet. In 1948, Shirley and her sister, Joyce, were in the inaugural class of women students at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash., where she received a degree in Social Work. She went on to do graduate studies in Social Work at the University of Ottawa, Canada. Shirley was a social worker in Spokane and the Palouse region for many years, assisting countless families and children.

On November 4, 1961 Shirley married Eugene Michael Schultheis in Uniontown, Wash. They settled into farming life in Colton, Wash., while raising four children, Mary Beth, Tracy, Chris and Julie. From 1975 to 1977, Shirley and Gene welcomed additional children, Hong and Chanh Truong as part of their extended family, after the Truong's immigration from Vietnam. Over the years, Shirley and Gene always opened their home to others, including numerous international students at WSU, to whom they were a host family.

Shirley was generous, kind and curious, and never willing to abandon a cause or project. She took up many pastimes, which she pursued passionately, including: collecting and refinishing antiques; gardening and cultivating her love of plants - receiving garden of the year award numerous times; photography and darkroom work - being recognized for her artistic talents with ribbons at the Palouse Empire Fair; English riding and dressage; playing her baby grand piano; taking up tap dancing in her 70's; and supporting with great enthusiasm WSU sports, Gonzaga basketball and the Seattle Mariners; to name only a few. With a love of all creatures great and small, through the years she took in a menagerie of pets, including ferrets, birds, cats, rats, dogs and goats. At her home away from home, a cabin on Lake Chatcolet, Shirley hosted many family gatherings. Although she retired from social work when she married, she continued to use the same principles and her giving heart to help others and those in need.

Shirley's spirit of inquisitiveness led her to become a passionate explorer and traveler. She would plan extensive trips for her family, when her children were young and later opened her own travel agency, the Travel Studio, on the WSU campus. On numerous occasions, she chartered an airplane to take WSU boosters to games, including the Rose, Copper, Sun, Alamo and Aloha Bowls. Developing a specialty in Asian travel, she took many groups to China and Hong Kong, where she learned the language and developed a love of the country and its people. Even her beloved pets' names, Mei Mei, Ling Ling and Shuang Yi, reflected her appreciation of Chinese culture.

In Shirley's later years, when experiencing limitations related to her health, she continued to express a gratitude for all that life had given her: her children, grandchildren, family and friends; her apartment; arranging flowers; Sarjo Demba and the supportive staff at Bishop Place; the Seattle Mariners; Gonzaga basketball; her cat, Cody; and the perennial loving care from her daughter, Julie.

Shirley was preceded in death by her husband, Gene, in 2013, and by siblings Joyce Settle and Ken Grieser. Shirley is survived by children: Mary Beth Schultheis (spouse Matt Dippell), Tracy Vaughn, Chris Schultheis (spouse Jana Ammerman Schultheis), Julie Schultheis (spouse Christopher Bontuyan) and Hong and Chanh Truong; grandchildren: Catalina Dippell, Emma Schultheis, Kate Schultheis, Elizabeth Vaughn, Catherine Vaughn, Ken Bontuyan, Alexis Meyer, Aliyah Bontuyan, Tom Truong, Binh Truong, Trung Truong and Elizabeth Truong; and siblings Phyllis Wilhelm and Joan Swensen.

A viewing for family and friends will be held on Monday, June 17, from noon to 6 p.m., at Corbeill Funeral Home in Pullman, Wash. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday, June 18, at 11 a.m., at St. Gall Catholic Church in Colton, Wash., with a rosary recited before the Mass at 10:30 a.m. Burial will take place at St. Gall Cemetery, following the Mass. A lunch will follow at the Colton Gun Club. Funeral arrangements are being made by Corbeill Funeral Home, Pullman WA.

Memorial donations may be made to St. Gall Endowment Fund or Colton Education Foundation. Online condolences may be sent to http://www.corbeillfuneralhomes.com