Jorgene M. Giovanelli, longtime Mercer Island resident, died peacefully in her sleep on Aug. 6, 2009. She was 83 years old and had battled Alzheimer’s disease for at least six years. She was a resident of Covenant Shores Reflections Home.

Mrs. Giovanelli, the youngest of four children, was born in Port Townsend, Wash., in 1926. She often spoke of the life there before the war. The times were much simpler, and the family maintained a vegetable garden, a cow and a flock of chickens. Her father was a barber.

When it became time for college, Mrs. Giovanelli headed to the University of Washington, Seattle; the students and her Sigma Kappa sorority sisters came as quite a shock to the smalltown girl. She soon adapted, thrived and graduated in 1948 with a bachelor’s degree in interior design.

In 1948, she married Gordon “Gus” Giovanelli. They moved to Mercer Island in 1954 and raised their three children on the water in the Ferncroft neighborhood. Home movies showed Mrs. Giovanelli was the life of any party, and she enjoyed every minute of it.

Mrs. Giovanelli and Gus built a house in Sayulita, Mexico, in 1963, and she visited there often for over 30 years.

Mrs. Giovanelli and Gus moved to Arizona in 1971. Following a divorce in 1975, Mrs. Giovanelli returned to Mercer Island to take up the second half of her life.

Mrs. Giovanelli traveled widely, usually to exotic locations. She commercially fished in Alaska, crewed on a sailboat in Fiji, worked an archaeological dig in Turkey and hiked the Himalayas. She visited all of Europe, Russia, Scandinavia, Morocco, Thailand, Egypt and more. On all of her travels, she acquired unusual artifacts which she arranged artfully in her home with her designer’s touch.

Mrs. Giovanelli was an active member of the Mercer Island Covenant Church. Her faith sustained her, as did a network of very close friends.

In recent years, Mrs. Giovanelli enjoyed the loving companionship of Bob Maxwell, whom she originally met when she was 16 years old. They traveled extensively together. He was devoted to her, and she benefited from his devotion, which brought great joy to her life, especially during the last years of her life.

The family wishes to thank that staff of Covenant Shores Reflections for the wonderful environment and assistance they provided and Evergreen Hospice group, which also provided thoughtful care.

Mrs. Giovanelli was preceded in death by her youngest child, Johanna Giovanelli, in 1996. She is survived by her two children, Thomas and Paula Giovanelli, and five grandchildren, William and Travis Tackett, Joseph and Regina Giovanelli, and Devin Nolett.

No services are scheduled.