Obituary for Shirley Lucille Piaskowski Shirley Lucille Piaskowski was 99 when she passed away at her home in Anchorage on March 10th, 2024. She was born on December 12, 1924, in Chicago to Anna Marie Mortensen and Walter Wacholz. Growing up with two sisters (Vernie and Betty) and a brother (Walter), she moved to Anchorage, Alaska in 1939, after living in California. While living on 9th Avenue in Anchorage, one evening Shirley met Robert Piaskowski. She was babysitting Robert’s sister’s children when Robert showed up at the house. Upon seeing Shirley, he said, “who are you and what are you doing here?” Shirley replied, “who are you and what are you doing here?” Shortly after, they began dating, with Robert buying Shirley her first pair of ice skates and teaching her to skate. They were inseparable, spending time together both skating and dancing, and were married on Christmas Eve, 1941. They had 11 children, which kept Shirley busy as a full-time homemaker. They established a homestead near Dimond and Old Seward Highway in 1947, and then moved to their Lake Otis homesite, where she resided for the last 65 years. Shirley derived her strength from her deep Catholic faith, singing in the choir and teaching catechism at Saint Benedict Catholic Church; she also served as a member of the Legion of Mary. Shirley loved having family and friends gather at her home, where she had an open-door policy, providing advice, love, and wisdom to all. She took pride in her house (especially the kitchen) that she designed herself. She had a fantastic memory and enjoyed sharing her life experiences; she truly had the pioneer spirit. She is proceeded in death by her husband Robert; both sisters; brother; and three children: Robert, Joseph, and William. She is survived by eight remaining children: Donald, Kathleen, Shirleen, Cynthia, David, Elizabeth, Christine, and Daniel. She had dozens of grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great-great grandchildren; she was devoted to, and loved them all. Friends and family are encouraged to share additional stories in the comments. Thank you. Some fond memories from Shirley’s children are also documented below. From her daughter, Shirleen: When I was six years old, we lived off Old Seward Highway, near where the current Toyota dealership is located. In those days, Old Seward only went as far as Dowling Road. So, we had to walk through the swamp toward the New Seward Highway, fighting mosquitoes and the cold and wet weather conditions for four blocks to get back home. This journey included hauling groceries, babies, and toddlers. With those extreme conditions, Mom and Dad did not realize that we were not required to attend Sunday Mass, but we always wore our Sunday best and sat close to the front row at St. Anthony’s, the second Church after the downtown Cathedral. The oldest kids received Sacraments from Holy Family Cathedral. The middle aged received them from St. Anthony’s, and the youngest from St. Benedict’s. Mom and Dad always valued the Church and Sacraments. Mom made 10 loaves of bread a couple times a week. She kneaded the dough so much that over time the countertop bowed down from the pressure. When we kids got home from school, we had hot bread sandwiches with melted butter and jam. From her daughter, Beth: April and I had taken mom and dad to Portland for a vacation to see Cindy when April was younger. One evening we were going out to dinner, a large group of large group of about 10 people. And we went around the table with everyone else placing their order. It came back to mom and she said, “ I’ll have what Beth having, the steak salad, it sounds good”. When the food arrived, and she saw that her salad had steak on it, she said, “ I’m not sure why I ordered this, I can’t eat steak and I can’t eat salad.“ So everyone except me (Beth) ended up sharing their dinners with her so that she could have something to eat. She was too embarrassed to order again. We had a good laugh.