Christine Brockway (Smith) Ervine passed away on June 6, 2017, ending a brave fight with lymphoma and polyneuropathy. Chris will be remembered for countless virtues including a loving heart, curious mind, generous hands and fighting spirit.

Born in Omaha, Neb., on March 1, 1953, the eldest child of Donald and Caroline Smith, she grew up in Seattle, where her family moved in 1956. She graduated from Queen Anne High School in 1971 and received bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Washington.
She married Gerald Robert Ervine on July 3, 1976 and they moved to Everett, WA, where they raised four daughters, Tracy, Allison, Katie and Beth. A wonderful mother, she gave her daughters the freedom to grow up differently in the same house. The result was four independent women with a variety of interests. She was also an amazed and grateful grandmother of five girls and five boys.

When she was 16, Chris lived in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, for a year as a Rotary exchange student and traveled throughout South America. That experience gave her a lifelong love of the Spanish language, adventure books and budget travel. "Live heavy and travel light" was her motto.
For many years, Chris taught ESL, Spanish and GED preparation at community colleges in Everett, Edmonds and Seattle and for the Tulalip Tribe and Indian Ridge Corrections Center. She welcomed exchange students into her home. Later, she worked as a real estate agent and she and Gerry owned investment property, partly because they loved to fix up houses.

Her favorite store was Goodwill, both because "you never know what you're going to find," and because the profits helped people improve their lives.

Chris was a person of strong faith, for years at Trinity Episcopal Church in Everett and later at Foursquare churches in Everett and Stanwood. Her faith was illuminated by an extensive reading of Christian and rabbinical scholars.

An avid and eclectic reader, Chris often said she'd be happy to live in a library, and her home in Everett housed several thousand books. She was famous, within the family, for often giving people the same title multiple times. They might, in fact, continue getting a book until they confirmed they'd read it.

Chris lived a life without vanity, artifice or falsity of any sort.

She loved swimming, walking, fishing at her beach house, reading, going to the opera and plays, trips to Disneyland and Yellowstone National Park, and spending time with friends and family. A warm and generous hostess, she was happiest with a house full of people. She loved a lively, informed debate and encouraged her daughters to form their own opinions. Her favorite historical figure was Benjamin Franklin. ("He's right up there with Santa Claus and Jesus.")

No one ever fought lymphoma harder or expressed more will to live and to see the story of life unfold for her daughters and sons-in-law, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Married to Gerry for 40 years, she was faithful and full of faith to the very end.

Chris is survived by her husband, Gerry, sister Rebecca Allen Smith, brother Steven Traviss Smith, daughters and sons-in-law Tracy and Josh Uhlman, Allison and Eric Fleischman, Katherine and Yuya Kobayashi, Elizabeth and Sean Harrington, grandchildren Jake, Paige and Natalie Uhlman, Adelaide, Benjamin, Thomas and Taylor Fleischman, Emma and Samuel Kobayashi and Andrew Harrington.

Her life will be celebrated at 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 9, at Stanwood Foursquare Church, 27007 90th Avenue NW, Stanwood, WA 98292. Arrangements by Cascade Memorial in Bellevue. Burial at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Seattle.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Stanwood Foursquare Church; The Salvation Army, 2525 Rucker Avenue, Everett, WA 98201; or Everett YMCA, 2720 Rockefeller Avenue, Everett WA 98201.