Mrs. Alta "Teta" Corbett Thomas, our MOM and HERO, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by those she loved on August 28, 2017.

She was born on May 26, 1918, the fourth of five daughters, to Elliott Ruggles Corbett and Alta Smith in Portland, Oregon.

Alta lived life to the fullest, never backing down from a challenge. She was an adventurer in spirit and actions. Circa 1940, she summited Mount Rainier, Mount Hood, Mount Adams, The Sisters and Mount St. Helens with an ice ax and crampons handmade for her by an old climbing guide.

Nature was one of Alta's lifelong passions. She related to it on a deeper level, which is apparent in a lot of her poetry. She was also an avid fly-fisherman... catching just what was needed for her cat, dog and herself. We can imagine Mom happily standing knee-deep in the river, casting her hand-tied fly onto the water's rippling surface while smoking a cigarette and chewing on the makings of a poem.

Early life consisted of horses and a freedom to explore. Painfully shy, she did not want to go off to school, but a compromise was made that she attend one year to "broaden her horizons" at Smith College.

After acquiring her Bachelor of Arts in history at Smith College and her private and commercial pilot's licenses at Swan Island Airport, Alta worked at the Pentagon for Air Branch G-2 as a research analyst when the W.A.S.P. (Women Airforce Service Pilots) program emerged.

She was granted a transfer and was one of 1,074 who were accepted and graduated with their wings out of 25,000 applicants. Combined, the W.A.S.P. flew over 60 million miles. She flew the AT-6, AT-7, AT-11, A-24, A-25, B-34 and UC-78. She was in Tow Target Squadrons 3rd and 1st; Camp Davis, North Carolina; and Liberty Field, Camp Stewart, Georgia.

The TTS helped train anti-aircraft artillery crews on the ground while towing targets at low and high (more than 10,000 feet) altitudes, IFF (identification friend or foe), cross-country flights, night searchlight missions, instrument training and dropping chaff to determine whether the radar could be interrupted.

When the W.A.S.P. were disbanded, they were left high and dry without jobs or their promised veteran status as World War II came to an end. Alta found a job with the Civil Aeronautics Administration as a communicator in Gustavus, Alaska, where she initially met our dad, Ralph Thomas. Then, she worked in Yakutat, Alaska, where Morse Code became her second language.

In her own words: "I spent the next 10 years living off the land and homing a cabin with cat and dog in the Willamette National Forest." She probably would've been very happy living out the rest of her life on the banks of the McKenzie with her dog, her fly rod, writing poetry and a couple of good friends.

Mom feared domesticity more than flying or mountain climbing. Perhaps that's commonplace for an adventurous spirit. She chose instead to give our dad her hand in marriage on June 8, 1961, with the expectation they were to travel the world in construction jobs, but he was hurt at a dam site and life changed, yet her commitment remained.

She was scared stiff of having to plan, shop for and then cook three meals a day, e-v-e-r-y day for the rest of her life. Dad said he was a good cook, so not to worry.

"For 10 years, we homed a sand dune on the Oregon coast. Here, our two daughters were born. We fished the ocean, clammed the sands, our daughters grew from infancy to school girls and my husband healed.

"Ralph, an Eastern Washington farm boy, wanted this experience for his girls. In Sequim, the small farm saw horses, cows, chickens, ducks, a sheep, a goat, cats and dogs. We irrigated fields and grew hay."

Mom aced her motorcycle safety course at age 70 - top of her class, we're told. No surprise here! In 2010, the WASPs were finally recognized for their service to our country during WWII, and at 92, Mom and family traveled to Washington, D.C., to receive the Congressional Gold Medal in person.

In the last 10 years of her life, as her world became smaller, Mom handled the changes with smiles, grace and gratitude. When she handed over her car keys, she walked everywhere despite being legally blind, and when offered a ride, her reply was always, "Heavens no, my legs are the only things that work."

When balance became an issue, trekking poles appeared to steady her gait. As the unsteadiness progressed, a walker replaced the trekking poles, but she deemed the newest accommodation to be "just the thing."

Time marched onward, as did age. Raising the flag in the morning, followed by a salute to start the day, bald eagle sightings with Kelly, trips to feed the ducks and geese with Debbie, and the nightly ritual of folding the flag with her will be sorely missed and never forgotten.

Our family was blessed to have a wonderful care team these last four years to help Mom with the things that didn't come so easily for her anymore. "Thank you" does not seem enough to say to these wonderful, caring women who came to love Mom almost as much as we do. You know who you are, and you have become part of our extended family.

Mom always led by example. We never heard her speak ill of another (even if it was warranted). She exemplified this quote: "There's so much bad in the best of us and so much good in the worst of us that it ill becomes any of us to find fault with the rest of us."

She was patriotic, courageous, gentle, gracious, humble and kind. She was the kind of person we strive to be.

Alta was predeceased by her husband, Ralph; sisters Caroline, Day, Judy and Lucy; their husbands; and her grandson Matthew McGoff.

She is survived by her two daughters, Debbie and husband Tom, with grandchildren Noah and Jenna of Port Angeles, and Kelly and wife Sherri; granddogs Finn and Koji of Sequim; stepsons Ralph Lee and wife Kathy, with their children, Vicki, Karen, Amy, Heidi and David; and their eight grandchildren of Georgia and John Thomas of Washington.

"Blessings to All. May we meet again."

There will be a Celebration of Life for friends and family Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017, from noon to 6 p.m. in Sequim. For details, please contact alta.thomas.service@gmail.com . A public service will be held at Tahoma National Cemetery, with the date to be announced later.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Northwest Raptor & Wildlife Center ,  1051 Oak Court, Sequim, WA 98382; or Volunteer Hospice of Clallam County , 540 East Eighth Street, Port Angeles, WA 98362.