Ellen Elma Ingrid ‘Lil’ Rajala (Tamppari)

Lil graduated from Ishpeming High School in 1944. Upon graduation she worked at the Gossard factory in Ishpeming. On June 12, 1947, Lil married Clifford Rajala and they resided in Ann Arbor. During 1951, the family relocated to the Washington DC area, where Cliff trained with the State Department.

In 1956, the family moved to Tabriz, Iran when Cliff was appointed Vice Council at the American Consulate by President Eisenhower. Lil also received State Department training and helped her husband with his official duties.

In 1958, the family settled in Cheney, Washington where Cliff was a professor of Geography at Eastern Washington University. Lil stayed at home to raise their six sons on their hobby farm in Cheney.

In 1983, Lil and Cliff built a home on 15 acres of treed land east of Sequim, Washington. She always enjoyed hosting many family gatherings at their home. Upon Cliff’s death in 2000, Lil continued to enjoy living in the country until 2013, when she moved to Spokane, Washington to be closer to her family.

Lil was a Master Gardener, and enjoyed cooking, sewing, decorating, music (she played the piano, organ and accordion), and playing slot machines at the casino. She also enjoyed corresponding with friends and relatives in Finland and around the United States.

Lil is survived by her six sons, Alex (Harriet), Jake (Karen), Fred (Janet), Dave (Ginny), Eric (Frankie) and Bob (Sheryl), her sister, Inga Tonkin and her brother, Ray Tamppari. She is also survived by 9 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband Cliff, her sister Irma Moody, and her brothers George and Lauri Tamppari.