Cynthia Mary Monge-Eaton

Cynthia Mary Monge-Eaton passed away peacefully at home on October 25th, 2024 after a five year battle with metastatic breast cancer.

She was born to Julius Monge and Yolonda Fiorentini in North Chicago, IL in 1949. At 3 years old she moved to Gurnee IL, where her parents built their dream home on the Des Plaines River. She had a pink bedroom and loved to read books and spend time with her neighbor, Myrtle, a local school teacher. At age 12, her parents sold their home and bought the Bel Lane Motel in Waukegan IL, where she perfected her technique of ironing sheets and hospital corners. For her 16th birthday her dad bought her Myrtle's car; a 1952 Dodge Synchromatic with a ram's horn hood ornament. She graduated in 1967 from Carmel High School. She was in the inaugural female Freshman class.

Cynthia set her sights on higher education and studied at Marquette University. She began seeing the world and exploring her love of history; studying abroad in Rome for a year. After graduating with a bachelors in history and education in 1971, she took her first teaching job at Jane E Tuitt Elementary School in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. She taught for two years and accomplished her job with very few resources. Once, she went on strike; taking the kids out to the playground until they received writing paper for the classroom. Cindy's qualities of being curious, open-minded, friendly and outgoing, helped her develop a close bond with her students and the locals on the island. After returning to the mainland United States, she continued to support the school by sending books to add to their library. Back in Illinois she continued teaching and returned to school to get her masters from Northeastern Illinois University where she focused on working with children with learning disabilities.

In December of 1977, Cynthia attended a Christmas party in Chicago Illinois where she met Tom Eaton, wearing a Hawaiian shirt and cowboy boots. She wasn't impressed by his corny jokes, but he was able to appeal to her love of architecture and he took her on a first date to Frank Loyd Wright's Chicago studio. They would marry in August of 1979 and hit the road west to Washington state where they settled down. In 1984, they welcomed their only child David into the world.

Cindy had a long successful teaching career working with elementary students with learning difficulties. She worked briefly at Evergreen Forest Elementary and Woodland Elementary until she took a full-time Special Education Resource Room position at Lakes Elementary. Several years later she switched gears and started teaching in a Title 1 funded program at Pleasant Glade Elementary and primarily worked teaching reading and supervising paraprofessionals within this program.

Cindy was always known by her teaching colleagues to be very hardworking. She was continually learning and improving her teaching practices. She took a year-long course in Reading Recovery. She was never satisfied with her current skills and very humble in evaluating her own teaching despite years of evidence to the contrary.

Her wonderful interpersonal skills led to great communication with classroom teachers regarding students she tutored. They also helped her connect meaningfully with parents. She was especially appreciated for designing successful evening programs for parents helping them to work with their children at home. When she retired, the staff at Pleasant Glade honored her as their Teacher of the Year.

Cynthia was always engaged in her local community. She especially loved supporting environmental conservation. Among other things, she enjoyed volunteering at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, surveying bird populations on Puget Sound, and being a salmon steward. She had countless other volunteer roles and stayed active in various clubs and groups.

One of her achievements was being part of the inception of the Hands On Children's Museum where she was the first president. Those who were there say that her insights as a teacher and parent were invaluable, but Cindy was always quick to downplay her role. She would laugh when remembering the tiny operation and shoestring budget in comparison to the world class organization that it has become.

Her five year battle with metastatic breast cancer was an inspiration for her friends and family. She never lost her love of life and was determined to stay positive and stay active. She especially loved to go snorkeling in warm tropical waters, and did so several times after her diagnosis. Even up until the very end she was doing what she loved. Just two days before she had to be taken to the ER, she was out rowing a boat in the Puget Sound with her friends of 30+ years. She was able to make it back home after a week in the hospital and lived out her final days enjoying a view of the water surrounded by an incredible network of family and friends.

Cynthia will be remembered for her immense kindness and humility, her keen curiosity to get to know people and history, her enduring smile, and the twinkle in her eye. She is survived by her husband Tom, her son David, family throughout the country, and the incredible community she's built all over the world. Celebration of life services will be held in Olympia and Illinois in the upcoming spring.