Christina May Conner Shrack

Christina May (Conner) Shrack passed away at home on Sunday, November 16th, 2014 at age 85 after an extended illness. She is survied by her children, Deniese (Robert) Sajdak, Wishram, WA; Debra (Charlie) Leach, Putnam, CT; and Loretta (David) Johnson, Pendleton, Oregon. Also surviving are nine grandchildren and ten great`grandchildren. She was preceeded in death by her husband, Dale Shrack, and lived alone 35 years before being reunited with him in death. Also surviving is a brother, William (Marilyn) Conner of Muncie, Indiana. Preceeding her in death were her other siblings: Dorothy, Albert, Wilma, Anna May, Mary, Milford, and Ruth Ann.

Christina was born in 1929, just days after the stock market crash. She spent her childhood in Indiana, in the towns of Muncie and Selma. Part of this time was spent on a farm, and she loved to tell stories from this era of her childhood. Times were not always easy, and she learned to make do with very little, as many during this time did. As a result, she learned life skills such as cooking, sewing, gardening, and canning which carried her through life. She was close to graduating from high school when her mother became ill and she was needed at home to care for her younger sister. As a result, she did not graduate with her class, though she was an excellent student. She also took a job during this time as a medical assistant, and on September 3rd, 1950 she married Dale Edward Shrack of Hartford City, Indiana. He had been a radar technician in the Pacific Fleet during WWII, and after the war ended enlisted in the National Guard, attaining the rank of Sargeant. Eventually he left military service and they both moved to Portland, Oregon, where he got a job repairing television sets and she settled into motherhood and homemaking.

Christina was an excellent mother and wife, frugal and very ordered in household matters; a firm disciplinarian, though loving, caring and attentive to her three daughters. Life in the suburbs was relaxed, full of friendships and support for one another. Eventually Dale attained a position at Techtronics, in Beaverton, and worked there until his death. When the girls grew older, both parents became 4-H leaders, and spent five years teaching young people—Dale electricity and Christina cooking. Both were dedicated leaders, helping whenever help was needed for judging or competitions, and accompanying their children to many activities over the years.

World events passed by: Sputnik, Gemini, Apollo, the Columbus Day Storm, the Christmas Day flood, a strong earthquake, the Kennedy assasinations, Martin Luther King, the moon landing. Mt. St. Helens erupted, and there was a full eclipse of the sun. Sadly, Dale also at this time developed colon cancer, and he passed away at almost 54 years of age. He had lived long enough to see each of his daughters married, and his first three grandchildren, each of whom he loved dearly. Christina learned to drive, returned to school and finally achieved her GED, and after Dale's death procured a job in downtown Portland as a medical assistant at a phlebotomist clinic. She worked very hard for the small pay and difficult work situation, but was proud to be able to support herself. She was especially proud the day she brought her first car—a brand new one which even now registers only 25,000 miles. Multiple back problems through her life finally caught up with her, and in ____ she resigned her job after 15 years of service.

Christina spent the final years of her life in constant pain, which was brought under control only by strong medication. Increasingly, she became dependent upon others doing things for her, and as her eyesight and hearing failed, she finally became house-bound. Her children helped her as they could, and the final months of her life required full-time care. She always wanted to spend her last days in her own home, and this she did. Fighting for every bit of independence, she resisted being an invalid until the very end. Her last food was a piece of soft fudge from her favorite store—the Chocolate Factory. After this, she settled in and prepared to meet the one who had brought her into this world.