Mother, friend, scholar, activist and nonprofit wiz Patricia Marie Birgen of Vashon, Wash. passed away peacefully at home on July 24. “Trish” was born in Puyallup, Wash., on Jan. 25, 1967 and grew up around South Seattle. She graduated from Decatur High School in Federal Way in 1985 and studied at Evergreen State College before completing her baccalaureate studies in anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley.
Driven by a passion for justice and tolerance of all cultures and faiths, Trish traveled through Europe and the Middle East on peace missions, narrowly escaping a kidnapping in Greece in the early 1990s. She protested in some of Seattle’s most infamous peace marches, including a Jan. 1991 Gulf War demonstration that closed operations at the Federal Building. Trish adopted the name “Redwolf” from a Native American healer who gave her the name: “red” for her fiery hair and passionate spirit, and “wolf” as a strong, courageous protector. Trish possessed a deep spirituality and connected readily with animals and the natural environment. Resourceful, she took pride in her former vegetable garden and in 2006 raised two pigs that fed her family for a year. She spent part of 2009 on a Washington coastal sabbatical with her twins in which the three camped for an entire summer; she told friends it was a precious gift of time well spent.
Trish worked several years in human resources for Immunex (later Amgen) and left the corporate world to help the nonprofit sector in what would become her consultancy, Redwolf Strategies. Trish’s tenacity and care positively impacted such local concerns as Home Alive, Lambert House, Treehouse, SEEDS, AHOPE, The Backbone Campaign, Vashon Island Coffee Roasterie, Heartstrings, and Sustainable Tourism on Vashon, and many more. She authored many nonprofit trade journal articles.
Although in recent years her health diminished, Trish’s spark burned bright. She was proud to co-captain Vashon Island People with MS (VIPMS) and helped raise thousands of dollars for the Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Greater Northwest Chapter, and powered through the 2010 WalkMS in Seattle with her twin boys in April. She also recently made two cherished trips to Portland.
Trish is survived by her three sons, Kashka “Kyle” Birgen, twins Tristan Conner Birgen and Quinn Sean Birgen; mother, Rebecca Marie Folkes; father, Patrick Joseph Birgen; brother, Michael Birgen; half brother, Will Folkes; stepsisters, Danette Folkes Reuff and Deanna Folkes; and a huge network of loving friends on Vashon, Seattle and the Northwest. A memorial service will be held Sunday, Aug. 15, 3 p.m., at the Gold Beach Community Club, 26004 Gold Beach Drive SW, Vashon. In lieu of flowers, please give to the “Estate of Patricia M. Birgen” benevolence fund at any U.S. Bank branch to help with the upbringing expenses of her twin sons.
