Michelle Winker

Michelle Winker, 51 of Issaquah, WA passed away Wednesday, May
5, 2010 in Seattle, WA.
A memorial service will be held at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, May 22nd
at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, SD.
Michelle Ann (Kinnunen) Winker, the daughter of Charles and
Darlene Kinnunen, was born on February 15, 1959 in Watertown, SD.
She spent her childhood years growing up in Watertown, Huron, and
Sioux Falls, SD. Graduating from Washington High School in Sioux
Falls, SD in 1977. She attended South Dakota State University for
two years, and then received her Legal Secretarial degree from
Nettleton Business College. Later in life she continued her
college education, receiving her Bachelor of Arts degree in
Business, graduating Cum Laude in April 2009. To celebrate her
accomplishment, her husband surprised her with a trip to Paris,
France.
Michelle always enjoyed music in her life. She played violin
and piano when she was young, continued with band and orchestra in
high school, and marching band in college.
Michelle married Greg Winker on August 29, 1981. During their
marriage, they lived in Denver, Colorado; Minneapolis, Minnesota
and Austin, Texas before they finally settled in Seattle,
Washington. They shared an interest in the outdoors, hot air
ballooning, traveling and sailing. Michelle always maintained an
interest in running and finally completed her first full marathon
in Austin. In her quiet time, Michelle would read, knit and spend
time with her friends and family over a cup of coffee. But what
Michelle was most passionate about was raising her two daughters.
She participated in their education and as many of their activities
as she could find time for. In the process, she created a close
and loving family.
Even after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, she continued
to stay active, participating in the first annual Puget Sound
Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Walk in Bellevue, Washington.
Grateful for having shared her life are her husband Greg,
daughters Gabrielle and Alexandra (all of Issaquah), parents
Charles and Darlene Kinnunen (Sioux Falls, SD), sister Pamela
(James) Vasgaard (Brookings, SD), father and mother-in-law Jim and
Marlene Winker (Sioux Falls, SD), and many nieces, nephews, and
friends.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Michelle's name
to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network
www.pancan.org