Yvonne T. Billera died suddenly on Nov. 30, 2013 from complications of a ruptured colon. She was born in 1950 in New York to Jeanne Beck, originally from England, and Christopher Trytko from Poland. Raised as an only child, Yvonne spent her childhood cultivating long-term friendships and developing a passion for riding horses.
Although starting out as an art history major at College of New Rochelle, she finished as an English major.
Yvonne worked for 19 years at College of New Rochelle, having been recruited by the college as one of the youngest administrators ever hired. She was vice president of administration specializing in fundraising by the time she left. She met Franklin in 1986 and, soon thereafter, decided to retire early and feed their passion for sailing. They bought a large yacht that became their home for six years and explored the eastern seaboard from Maine, throughout the Caribbean, to the northern shores of South America.
The couple moved to Whidbey in 1995, drawn to the west because Franklin’s son, Tony, and family were living in the area. Yvonne immediately became active with Whidbey Animal Improvement Foundation, helping re-home many dogs and cats and acting as President for several years. She rekindled her love of horses by becoming involved in jumping, eventing, trail riding and dressage.
She worked at Moonraker Books in Langley for about 14 years, assisting many of us to find our favorite books.
She was a great cook and generously shared her recipes. Yvonne often commented on her fortunate life — feeling luckier than most.
She loved, enjoyed and appreciated her husband. She loved the many adventures with her horses and the friendships developed through them. Her dogs added spice and constant companionship. She was a loyal friend, smart, witty, beautiful, classy and hard working with a compassion for the less fortunate.
Her greatest recent achievement was bringing along her Welsh cob, who couldn’t canter when she got him, to fourth level in the dressage world. Her zest for life was contagious — making her friends dance, laugh and not be so worried about growing older as she continued to have fun until the end. As one friend remarked, “From a young age she had an inner light and understood friendship.”
Yvonne is survived by her husband, Franklin; her mother, Jeanne Chelchowski of Florida; sisters Maia O’Donnell of Florida, Eva Kelly of Florida, and Ania Allwarden of New Hampshire; brothers-in-law Jack, Ferg and Chris; stepsons Tony of Washington, and Charles of Texas; and nieces and nephews Brendan, Chris, Diana, Tara, Ferg, Michael, Brian, Kevin and Julie, scattered along the East Coast.
Viewings were Dec. 5 and 6 at St. Hubert’s Catholic Church in Langley. The service was 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 6 at St. Hubert’s, with a burial service following at Sunnyside Cemetery in Coupeville. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that a donation be sent in Yvonne’s name to WAIF, P.O. Box 1108, Coupeville, WA 98239. Family and friends are encouraged to share memories and condolences at www.whidbeymemorial.com
