LaVerne Hall

July 9, 1929 – December 21, 2025

LaVerne Hall, 96, died peacefully on the winter solstice, December 21, 2025, at Cornerstone Adult Family Home in Bellevue WA, where she lived the last five years of her life. She was a beloved grandmother, mother, sister, daughter and friend, preceded in death by soulmate and husband Frederick Hall and her sister Rita Eshuis. She is survived by her children, Delia Floor (Jeff), Chris Hall (Andriette), Kim Hall, Jae Bevan (Vernon) and grandchildren Camille Hall Ridenour, Theo Floor, Mitso Floor, Eryl Bevan, Fiona Bevan, Rhys Bevan and Liam Bevan. 

Born in Chicago, her childhood years were spent in Paw Paw, Michigan where her family ran a small resort on Eagle Lake. Laverne played clarinet, girls’ basketball and participated in theater and musicals at school. She remained in touch with friends from her early years, especially Mary Lou (Masten) Angioletti. LaVerne and Lou met when they each drove themselves from their rural homes (at around age 14) to the local high school, as there was no school bus. LaVerne and Lou finished high school at sixteen and went on to university studies. At Michigan State University, LaVerne studied psychology and made friends in the international students’ club, which inspired her to relocate to the Territory of Hawai’i after graduation. She moved with a record player and a pillow in her suitcase. Laverne quipped that she learned more about human behavior teaching dance in Honolulu than she did getting her psychology degree. She became lifelong friends with Honolulu residents Irwin and May Tanaka and Dick and Mike Wiley. 

She moved from Honolulu to Long Beach California to work at juvenile hall and then as an elementary teacher. She met Fred when he was an aeronautical engineering graduate student at UC San Luis Obispo. They married in 1957 in her parent’s garden and settled in Bryan, Texas, where Fred taught at Texas A&M. When they had a choice of moving to Oklahoma or Washington, they chose Bellevue, WA and lived the rest of their married life there. 

LaVerne and Fred moved to a larger house in 1967 where they spent many happy years raising four offspring, becoming a congenial and tight-knit community with several other families through decades of kids’ schooling, swim team, soccer, scouting, seasonal gatherings and community projects. 

Overlake Travel was her professional destination when she returned to work and was source of additional friendships. She satisfied her wanderlust with trips to Asia, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Africa, Scandinavia and Europe, mostly with Fred and occasionally alone. 

After Fred’s untimely death in 1992, LaVerne stayed in the familiar cul-de-sac near the creek and Edgebrook community pool. She swam regularly and encouraged her grandchildren to do the same. 

The trees and lakes of her home state and the Pacific NW were dear to her, which led to supporting environmental causes and reproductive rights. She was active in AAUW (American Association of University Women) and was a poll worker for many election cycles. 

LaVerne was a free spirit who loved dancing, opera, country music, running, walking, swimming and pickled herring. She had a quiet unconventional streak, whimsical practicality, and a sense of humor that will be dearly missed. 

A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday, March 14, 2026, at the Mercer Slough Environmental Center. RSVP to LaverneZmemorial@gmail.com for details. 

In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to Conservation Northwest.