Lilly Anna Lena (Ann) Coughran Bassett Einert passed away peacefully on April 11, 2019, at St. Peter’s Hospital in Olympia, Washington. She was 99 years and almost four months old. (Yes, when you’re that amazing, you count the months). She was born Dec. 24, 1919, to Charles P. Coughran and Carrie May Roberts Coughran in Norman, Arkansas.
On July 9, 1937, Ann married Leighton Austin Bassett in Arkansas. They soon moved to McCleary, Washington, where they lived and raised their family, consisting of four boys — Don, Ken, Jerry and Mike, and daughter Karen. As if raising five children wasn’t enough, Ann worked at Mark E. Reed Hospital in McCleary for 20-plus years. After retirement, Leighton and Ann enjoyed traveling south to the sun, especially Quartzite and Yuma, Arizona. Sadly, Leighton passed away in 1980.
In 1984, Ann married Ewell C. Einert in McCleary, Washington. They spent many years working on their extensive garden, fishing, camping,and traveling south to Yuma before his death in 2011. Ann then moved to the Beehive Retirement Center in McCleary, Washington. She enjoyed playing bingo, Sunday church service, visiting with friends, weekly pizza/game days with Ken & Karen and Sunday dinners with the Olson & Vessey families.
Throughout her life, Ann enjoyed gardening; cooking (her cinnamon rolls, blackberry cobbler, creamed corn, and biscuits & gravy were family favorites); clam digging, camping, playing Aggravation, cards and dominoes (she always won); and truly anything involving time with her family. She loved watching sports, especially the Seattle Mariners. Ann was extraordinarily warm and kind, making everyone around her feel welcomed and loved. She claimed that the secret to her long life was that she “never stopped moving” and that she used half & half (because that makes everything better).
Ann was preceded in death by her five siblings, her parents, her sons Jerry and Mike Bassett, her daughter Karen Bassett Olson, her son-in-law John Olson, daughter-in-law Wendy Bassett, grandson Austin Bassett, great-grandson Greyson Vessey and an infant daughter, Patricia.
She is survived by her son Ken (Kelly) Bassett of Olympia, Washington; Don (Jeannie) Bassett of San Clemente, California; numerous nieces and nephews; 16 grandchildren; 28 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild with another on the way.
A graveside service for immediate family is scheduled for Thursday, April 18, at 2 p.m. at McCleary Cemetery. A celebration of a loooong life will be held at 3 p.m., at the McCleary VFW Hall, 158 N. Summit Rd., McCleary, WA.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Bassett Memorial Scholarship Fund c/o Edward Jones, PO Box 1742, Elma, WA 98541.
