Julianne West

1949 - 2025

Julianne "Jo" West passed away on November 4th, 2025 after a brief illness. She was born in Cupertino, California on February 6th, 1949 to Herbert "Dan" and Joycelyn (Claiborne) Aronson. After attending her hometown DeAnza College, Jo moved to Colorado and graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Elementary Education in 1972. She worked for many years as an administrative assistant at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics on campus.

She raised her two children, Todd and Carly, in Louisville, Colorado. She had a knack for providing one of a kind experiences for her children, such as seeing a space shuttle launch at Cape Canaveral, visits to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, and getting tickets to the first Colorado Rockies baseball games. This carried on to her two grandchildren, Emily and Lucas, who provided her greatest joys in life.

Jo later moved to Fircrest, Washington where she pursued her life-long interest in quilt making. She was a regular at the Gig Harbor Farmer's Market and she often donated her quilts to causes important to her, such as Spike's K9 Friends, Race for a Soldier, and victims of the Marshall, Colorado wildfires.

Jo was predeceased by her parents, Dan and Joycelyn, as well as her brother Richard. She is survived by her son Todd West, his wife Anne and daughter Emily of Orland, Maine and her daughter Carly Swanson, her husband Lenny and son Lucas of Fircrest, Washington. She is also survived by her brother Robert Aronsen, sister Karyn DeBoer and her husband Bruce, and Richard's children Ivy, Richard, and Nicholas as well as special friends Linda Sahl and Kimberly Mitchell.

A celebration of life will be held in July in Tacoma. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Jo's name to Spike's K9 Friends.