Jean L. Cardin

JEAN L. CARDIN June 5, 1923 ~ April 21, 2011 Jean L. Cardin of Vancouver, WA, died peacefully at home on April 21, 2011. She was born in Gowanda, NY on June 5, 1923 to Robert Henry Ritz and Estelle Lulu Denniston Ritz. Her father was a pharmacist, and upon his urging, Jean studied pharmacy at the University of Buffalo in New York after attending Green Mountain College in Vermont. She received a degree in pharmacy and became a licensed pharmacist, working in her father's drug store. Jean met Philip George Cardin shortly before he was deployed to Europe where he served as a pilot in the Air Force during World War II. Upon his return, they were married on January 7, 1945. They had two daughters, Ruth Gretchen in 1946 and Anita Jean in 1949. Jean lived the Air Force life, moving frequently. She and Philip were stationed in Japan, Canada and Germany and many places in the United States including Virginia, Texas, Alabama and California. They retired to Woodland, WA in 1978, and they moved to Vancouver in 1998 where Jean was able to remain until her death. Though trained as a pharmacist, Jean's passion in life was art. She began painting in oils, but she quickly moved on to watercolors which allowed more freedom and freshness in her paintings. Jean continued her studies with numerous watercolor instructors like Milfred Zornes and Robert E. Wood, attending workshops around the world. Back at home in Woodland, Jean began instructing watercolor classes which she continued until just a few years before her death. Locally, she was a member of the Southwest Washington Watercolor Society and the Oregon Society of Artists. She received many awards for her paintings. Jean and Phil loved their home in Woodland where they had a garden and fed the birds and squirrels and took daily drives to explore the Northwest. Jean loved her cat, Songbird, and her beloved dog, Friday. She will be remembered for her sensitive talent as an artist, for her refined and gentle nature and for her love of all things blue, like her eyes. Jean is survived by her daughters, Ruth Gretchen Gregory of Beavercreek, OH and Anita Jean Kinghorn of Vancouver, WA; her sister, Nina Decker of Rushford, NY; three grandchildren, Raymond Philip Gregory, Donica Kaye Kline and Yarra Jean Espinosa; and twelve great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Philip, in 2002; and by her parents. Jean will be buried with Philip at Willamette National Cemetery in Portland, OR. A graveside service will be held on Tues., April 26, 2011 at 12:30 p.m. The family wishes to extend special thanks to the loving and devoted caregivers who tended to Jean in her last years and allowed her to stay in her home. Please make any memorial donations to the Alzheimer's Association and Hospice Southwest.

Jean L. Cardin

June 5, 1923 - April 21, 2011