Laurie Clumpner

It is with deep sorrow that I share the passing of Laurie Clumpner. After a courageous and hard-fought battle with cancer, Laurie left us on June 13, 2025 at 7:52 p.m.

As you all know, Laurie was a lifelong resident of Bellingham. Who didn’t know Laurie? Maybe you had breakfast with her (airplane pancakes, of course!) at the Airport Café when she, her mother, and her sister owned that community icon. Or maybe you popped into Glynn’s Shamrock Pub on a St. Patrick’s Day for one of their quintessential green beers. It was your lucky day when Laurie served you that beer. You would have been greeted with an infectious laugh and likely regaled with an entertaining tale. You certainly would have left with a smile on your soul.

I met Laurie when she worked at the 7-Eleven on Lakeway Drive. I’m not what you would call a “morning person.” This felt like a personal challenge to Laurie. You all know the smile, the laugh, that slightly salty joke she always had on the tip of her tongue. Laurie was determined that I not start my day until she had replaced my crotchety morning face with a reluctant smile, and she did not waver from that mission. And of course, I know I was only one of many people she greeted each day with the same commitment to the same goal. Laurie insisted on sharing her joy and she was not to be denied.

In her later years, Laurie joined the team at Hardware Sales, another uniquely Bellingham institution. If you’ve ever been to Hardware Sales, you know it can be a challenge. If the seemingly millions of nuts, bolts, screws, tools (you get the picture), don’t instill a bit of panic, the sheer vastness of the place might. But there was Laurie, right there to calm the trepidation, and point you in the right direction, and (most likely) call you by name. And always with that smile!

Laurie loved – no, let me rephrase that – Laurie LOVED holidays. This author has had the privilege of knowing her for only 20 years. I say “only” because most of you have known her for much longer. But in those 20 years, I watched her embrace any call for celebration with a childlike joy that was impossible to resist. No occasion was too small for her to mark with laughter. And every year I marveled at the amount of thought and preparation she must have put in when choosing just the right card or the often-humorous gift, gifts that brought her every bit as much joy imparting as we experienced receiving. And the costumes! Who can forget the costumes? The masks, the outfits, the hats. So many hats! Among Laurie’s many talents, her unique creativity cannot be omitted. With her boundless joy for every celebration, she truly never failed to delight us all.

Laurie might be most famous for what I like to call her “Christmas Chex Mix Extravaganza.” I cannot be the only one who waited all year for this. Being her close neighbor, I had a rare insight into the process. For weeks before every Christmas, the smell of that buttery goodness wafted upstairs. I won’t lie. I’m not too proud to admit that I may have ventured downstairs for a refill or two. There were containers stacked to her roof in the condo, all filled with Chex Mix. I really don’t know how many of those containers made it into the hands of the eagerly awaiting public, but I know there must have been hundreds, if not thousands, of lucky recipients. And I also know that during her final Christmas, when illness weighed heavily, she insisted on making that Chex Mix. Because to Laurie, giving joy was as vital to her spirit as breathing. Her generosity and delight in life made her a friend to anyone who met her. She taught us all how to care and how to find light, even in the darkest of times.

We have suffered a heart-rending loss. Laurie left us gently, wrapped in the warmth of those who loved her most. She was surrounded by the love of friends and family, just as she lived: held, cherished, and never alone.

Laurie was preceded in death by her mother Beverly, her father Jack, and sister Jackie. She is survived by her brother Curt, niece Lilly, her partner of 30 years, Dan Trowse, and her sweet pug Elvis. Laurie has too many beloved cousins and treasured lifelong friends to list here. Rest assured, she forgot none of you. Each of you held a place in her heart, just as she now holds a place in ours.

We invite everyone whose lives she touched to join in a celebration of her remarkable spirit on Tuesday, July 29th at 2:30pm at Squalicum Boathouse at Zuanich Point Park, 2600 N Harbor Loop Dr. Bellingham, WA. We encourage you to bring memories, photos, stories, laughter, and even tears, to share as we celebrate her life together. She gave so much to each of us and now we welcome the pieces of her that live on in you.