Sigrid Ann Heggenes Worland was born in Langley Jan. 17, 1935, and she died in Phoenix, Ariz., May 25.
She graduated from Langley High School on Whidbey Island, and was class of 1953’s valedictorian. She then attended business school before working for City of Seattle.
Sigrid married her childhood sweetheart, Byron Worland, in 1954.
Proud of her Norwegian Heritage, she passed on traditions to her children and grandchildren and a few extras. Mom’s recipe and unique folding technique for making lefse is now being made across America.
She was a good mother, sister, auntie and wonderful grandma and great-grandma. Sometimes her job description included “chauffer,” driving her son on his Arizona sales route when he couldn’t drive due to medical reasons. She also had the honor of one of her grandsons escorting her to a wedding when she didn’t have a date.
She was the surrogate mother of many friends of her children and Rainbow girls over the years, who came to her home for holidays, counseling, nurturing and a good laugh. She loved them all.
A talented cook and homemaker, she carries the moniker “laundry Queen” with a nod to her passion for perfectly folded t-shirts and bed sheets. Sig didn’t possess the restraint to pass up a bargain when shopping, ever. If you were ever out of mayonnaise, butter or chicken, she had plenty on hand to help you out. This is an inside family joke that she took in stride, laughing at herself, but she never stopped shopping.
She was a social networking wonder. Techno savvy, she was not afraid to open up her own businesses over the years in construction, commercial and residential painting and retail.
A lifelong devoted Lutheran who spent untold hours volunteering her services to help, she rarely asked for help herself. She was volunteering for Habitat for Humanity as a painter in her 70s. She was so good at it, so they invited her to paint the Habitat main offices.
Sigrid and Byron had the wanderlust. They traveled all over our country, camping or RVing so much so, that their youngest daughter, Kristine, tells people that her parents drug her all over the country while she was growing up and that is why she has become a world traveler.
Sig and Byron started “Snowbirding” when they were in their early 50s and ended up in places for wintering like Parker, Calif., Death Valley, Calif., Palm Desert, Calif., Yuma, Ariz., and eventually landed fulltime in Phoenix, where Sig, a widow by then, spent the rest of her life.
Sigrid is survived by her sister Louise Fitzgerald and her children Dale and Donovan; her own children Camie and Tom Davies along with grandchildren Lindsey, Christopher and Colleen; Linda and Blake Little along with grandchildren Megan and Jacob; son, Ken Worland; daughter Kristine Worland; and her precious great-grandchildren Will and Evie.
A memorial service was held at 10 a.m. May 31 at Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, 918 S. Litchfield Road, Goodyear, Ariz., 85338. A celebration of life will be held on Whidbey Island later this summer. Details will be forthcoming.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church – Outreach program, which serves the homeless and working poor, a cause that was dear to Sigrid’s heart.
