Janet Louise Dalrymple

JANET LOUISE (SHEVACH) DALRYMPLE
June 19, 1946 ˜ February 4, 2025

On June 19, 1946 in Vancouver, WA, Melvin and Josephine Shevach welcomed their third child, Janet Louise, to the world. Janet was energetic, precocious, and a ballet dancer. Janet loved school. She excelled in math and science - and football. She was an honor roll graduate, and a cheerleader at Fort Vancouver High School.
In 1964 she chose to study Interior Design at the University of Washington. It was there that she met her husband-to-be, Bob Dalrymple. The architecture program they studied forged an unbreakable bond of common information, design passion and creativity that would be the foundation of their relationship for many years to come.
Following graduation Janet pursued her artistic goals with fabric art and appliqué projects, several of which she entered in the annual Bellevue Arts and Crafts competition. Janet began her design career working for Seattle area architects and furniture outlets. Janet and Bob were married in 1971, and they welcomed the third member of their family, a son Robert III (RE) in 1972. He was to be their only child, and he became an irreplaceable part of Janet’s life and career.
A career path change for Bob initiated a move back to Vancouver, WA where Bob would join Janet’s father in his men’s clothing business, “Melvin’s Men’s Shop”.
In 1977 Janet established “Dalrymple Design Group, ps”, a space-planning and interior design firm, serving the Vancouver, WA/Portland, OR. area. In 1986 Janet, Bob and RE moved back to Seattle. Janet established “Dalrymple and Associates, ps”, a space planning and interior architecture firm. For the next 20 years, her small Pioneer Square office served as a leading space planning consultant for Seattle area office space. From the very beginning Janet was fiercely independent, and her struggle for recognition as a woman-owned business, as the creator of the design solutions she devised, and as the talent that she central to her business, lasted throughout her career.
Janet closed the doors on her business in 2005 shifting her energy and focus to two primary areas of her life. First, volunteer work for Seattle’s nonprofit “Cancer Lifeline” - where she worked on their telephone support network, organized their annual fundraising luncheons, and ultimately, served on their board of directors.
Her second primary focus was her 3 - soon to be 4 - grandchildren. She would drive the 40-or-so miles to Auburn and back at least 2 times a week to ferry grandkids to soccer, or swimming, or baseball, or karate - and sometimes even Red Robin. The family joke was that her little red Volvo would be smoking in the driveway by the end of each day from racing around tending the kids. This was the joy of her life, and the kids all loved her for it.
Janet found time to complete a couple of books. First, a children’s story “O.C.Tebbs and the Littlest Dipper” was completed, but the final edition never reached publication. In 2012, Janet wrote “The Story of Hanukkah Howie”. Illustrated by her husband, Bob, and published by Seattle’s Peanut Butter Publishing, the book was distributed from coast-to-coast. It received rave reviews from parents and kids, and was selected as the “2012 Book Of The Year” from Creative Child Magazine.
In a heartbeat, on April 6, 2015, Janet’s world changed completely. She was diagnosed with an incurable malignant brain tumor - “glio-blastoma multiforme”. In the struggle to survive, the diagnosis was followed by surgery, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy. Her spirit never faltered, but she gradually lost her ability to walk, or to write, or to speak with any sense of completeness. She struggled for over nine years as these skills she had so strongly mastered were gradually taken away. We moved her residence to Auburn, to be closer to son RE & family, where the family love and attention never stopped. In that place of family care, she passed away Feb. 4, 2025
Janet’s family is grateful to the doctors and staff at Swedish Neural Medicine, and the Providence Hospice team for the care and consideration lovingly provided during her final days. In lieu of gifts or flowers, donations to “Cancer Lifeline” are requested.
Please share a memory @ www.columbian.com/obits