Sharlene Evonne Sloop, 90, died Jan. 3, 2026 with Parkinson’s disease. The oldest of three girls, Sharlene was born May 5, 1935 in Council Bluffs, Iowa to Ralph and Freeda Wood. When Sharlene was six they moved to Hoquiam, Wash., where she began piano lessons after a friend donated a piano to the family. She loved practicing the piano from the first day and no one ever needed to remind her to practice. They moved to a farm in Willow Springs, Mo., when she started high school. The farmhouse had no electricity or indoor plumbing! She graduated from Sunnydale Adventist Academy in 1953 and then attended Union College for three years where she met her future husband, Jay Randall Sloop. Jay graduated the morning of May 27, 1956, and they married in the afternoon. Their honeymoon was spent driving to Loma Linda, California where Jay was to begin medical school. She remembered pulling a one-wheeled trailer with all their belongings. During the medical school years, Sharlene worked as a secretary in a medical office. Jay graduated in 1960 and completed his internship in Los Angeles where twins Rick and Randy were born in 1961. The family moved to La Grande, Ore., for two years and then back to Los Angeles for Jay’s OBGYN residency. It was in Los Angeles where Sharlene began organ lessons and work as a church organist. The residency was interrupted by two years of Air Force service in Lubbock, Texas, where their 3rd son, Gregory, was born in 1967. After finishing the residency back in Los Angeles, the family moved to Yakima, Wash., in 1969. Sharlene continued playing the organ and piano and over the years was the organist at several churches in Yakima including the First Christian Church followed by Englewood Christian Church where she played for 26 years and the Seventh-day Adventist Church where she played for 50 years. She was a member of the American Guild of Organists and greatly enjoyed meeting and working with many musicians in Yakima and the Northwest. Sharlene was a lifelong Seventh-day Adventist and a member of the Yakima Seventh-day Adventist church for 56 years where she served the Lord faithfully. Her walk with Christ was steadfast despite tragedy. It shaped the way she lived, served, and raised her family. Her 57 years of marriage were cut short when Jay went missing in Kiev, Ukraine, on a medical mission — his body was found 2 ½ years later. Her beautiful home and yard were her delight and she could spend many hours tending the flowers — she especially loved roses. She enjoyed walking for exercise and for years she and Jay walked a 2 ½ mile loop each evening which included several steep hills. She was an occasional hiker and cross-country skier mainly to keep up with the family. Sharlene also enjoyed family drives to Mt. Rainier and the mountains nearby. Her greatest joy was always her family — and she especially relished summer afternoons when the grandkids came to swim and she could treat them to ice cream. She is survived by her three sons, Richard (Linda), Randal (Christine), and Gregory (Lisa); grandchildren Sasha, Jenny, Jeff, Katie, Jacob and Rachelle and seven great grandchildren.