Elaine Ursula Edwards

Elaine Ursula Edwards, 91 of Las Cruces, New Mexico, died on Tuesday, March 17, 2026 at Arbors Memory Care in Las Cruces ten days before her 92nd birthday. She was a beloved mother, grandmother, and great grandmother and an unforgettable bright light to all of her many friends.

Elaine was born on March 27, 1934, in St. Helena, California to Christopher Panagus (Skountges) and Lenore Elvestia Scott. She spent the first four decades of her life in Napa, California, where she attended Napa High and Napa Junior College. She married Larry W. Waggoner at St. John's Catholic Church in 1953. They had five lively children, all close in age. An adept juggler, she also worked full time as a secretary for the medical records department at the Napa State Hospital with a staff of women who idolized her for her kindness and fun personality. She loved throwing parties, and many Napans will remember the get togethers on Dry Creek Road for Halloween, Easter, High School graduations, or just because. After lots of rock and roll and country-western dancing, her father would inevitably call out, "Sissy put on the Greek record!" On cue, she would gather party goers in the living room, and he, with her by his side, would lead everyone in a traditional Greek dance that was more free form than traditional. Elaine's parents were most known for running Scott's Fish Market in Napa for several years. Elaine inherited her father's sense of humor and love of dance and her mother's gift of homemaking, gardening, and sassy comebacks. She was especially close to her widowed Italian-only-speaking grandmother, Enrichetta Molteni or "Nona," of St. Helena, who had immigrated from Italy in 1908, after her husband, Augustino, came to work the vineyards in 1902. Elaine and her Nona died, as she believed they would, close in age—in fact within two days of being the same age at the close of their lives.

Elaine and Larry and their youngest son moved to Vancouver, Washington in 1976, where she worked for the Clark County Clerk's office. In 1977 she and her husband bought the historic Stella Tavern on the Columbia River in Longview, Washington, where she became the belle of the establishment to the colorful locals. After she and Larry divorced, she married Jack Edwards in 1981, who proved to be the love of her life. They both couldn't resist going to swap meets and just "dinging around" wherever they happened to be. They also loved to dance, play cribbage, meet new people, as well as spend time with their grandchildren who lived nearby. At this time Elaine was employed by the Washington State Crime Lab but also became an enthusiastic volunteer for the Friends of Skamokawa, a wonderful organization housed in the one hundred twenty plus year old Central Schoolhouse/Redmen Hall, which is still "dedicated to preserving and sharing the rich history of Skamokawa and its vibrant river life." Besides helping to conserve the historic schoolhouse, Elaine loved putting on and participating in the organization's annual and semi-annual performances that included musical acts and comic skits.

After Jack died tragically in 2002, Elaine relocated to Las Cruces, New Mexico, where her youngest child and his family lived. Here she met her third husband, Carl Hansen, among a group who met weekly to go out dancing. They married in 2008 and lived in El Paso but moved back to Las Cruses last year due to declining health. He died in September. Besides surviving two widowhoods and the deaths of her two children, Elaine's challenge was to hone her superb gardening skills in a dry and hot southwest environment. After the lush landscape that surrounded her home with Jack in Longview (which she turned into a gardener's delight!), she learned to nurture cacti with the same abandon. Notably, besides the many sad people she leaves behind, she also leaves a house full (inside and out) of beautiful but grieving desert fauna and orchids.

Heartbreakingly, Elaine's two middle children died before her, Bill in 1997 and Cathy in 2017. Her surviving children are Larry Waggoner, retired physical therapist, of Beaverton, Oregon; Linda (Roger Bell, Jr.) Waggoner, writer, of Healdsburg, California; and Christopher (Liza) Waggoner, nurse practitioner and musical performer of Las Cruces, New Mexico—the latter of whom with his wife took tender care of her in her last months. Also surviving are several adoring grandchildren who will miss their "Nonie" terribly. They are, from oldest to youngest, Brooke (Ben Chapman) Vermillion of Long Beach, California; Quentin (Jackie) Johnston of Napa, California; Genny (Albert) Elam of Etna, California; Ryan (Angie Wells) Waggoner of Everett, Washington; Hilary (Nick) Hankins of Greensboro, North Carolina; Neal (Nell) Carson of Santa Rosa, California; Cassandra (Matt) Nation of Beaverton, Oregon; Samuel (Brieanna) Waggoner of Oak Park, Illinois; and Roxanne (Leonard Sampath) Waggoner, of Redlands, California. Other family members who will miss her are her four step-children, Robert (Gena) Hansen, Carolyn (Mark) Gordon, Jan Hansen, and Richard Hansen, as well as two step-granddaughters, Biba and Gelsey Bell. She also leaves eight cherished great-grandchildren, Ashton, Xander, and Ryder Elam, Ethan and Zac Johnston, Dion Chapman Vermillion, Lyra Waggoner, and Ella Carson. Several cousins in Greece grieve her loss as well as Sia Skountges in Melbourne, Australia.

She also leaves her only sibling, big-brother Charles P. Scott, and his dear wife, Elaine, of Napa, California, as well as their daughter and son, Theresa and Christopher.

A celebration of Elaine's life will be held at Redmen Hall in Skamokawa, Washington on Labor Day, September 7, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. The family invites all who knew her to attend and share their favorite memories. After the memorial service, she will be interred with Jack Edwards at the Bunker Hill Cemetery in Longview, Washington. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Friends of Skamokawa/River Life Interpretive Center, 1394 W State Route 4, Skamokawa, WA, 98647 or online at: https://friendsofskamokawa.org/donations/auction-donation-form//.