Laurel Marie Reilly was called to heaven peacefully on July 23rd, 2020 after a fifteen-year battle with breast cancer and just over two years after her re-diagnosis of metastasized breast cancer. Laurel was born prematurely in Spokane, Washington on April 18th, 1948. After 2 months in the hospital she and her twin sister were released to go home, at that point weighing a whopping 3 pounds each. She was so premature it was thought she wouldn't survive. Laurel continued to thrive and made a beautiful and wonderful life for herself and her family. She attended grade school at St. Augustine, high school at Marycliff and college at Fort George Wright. After college Laurel worked as a Medical Technologist for Spokane Medical Laboratory. This was a perfect calling for her scientific side. She always loved nature, especially birds and bugs, and doing science experiments with her kids and grandkids. In 1986 she went back to school and earned her Master's Degree in Education with a Reading emphasis from Gonzaga University (Go Zags!). She taught for St Francis Xavier Parochial School for 6 years as a 4th 5th combination class teacher. She then worked for District 81 as a substitute teacher and tutor mentor. She loved connecting with her students and seeing the light in their eyes as they started to grasp and understand the concepts she was teaching. Her passion was her family. And she spent countless hours hauling kids to extracurricular activities. She loved boating and camping along Lake Roosevelt and at the ocean, and enjoyed RV'ing along the Gulf Coast during the winter. She would spend hours and hours combing the beaches for agates, sand dollars, rocks, and seashells. She was a lifelong reader and later during her illness enjoyed assembling jigsaw puzzles to keep her mind active. In 2005 She was diagnosed with breast cancer and dove into all things pink. Someone told her that from day 1 diagnosis, she was a survivor! And that's the message she carried and lived every day for the rest of her life with strength and determination most can only dream of. But you wouldn't always recognize how fiercely she fought to be a survivor. She became a member of Team Bosom Buddies and actively participated in the support, mentorship, fundraising, and awareness for those diagnosed with breast cancer. She assisted Team Bosom Buddies with hosting their annual Pink Ribbon Tea for each of the 10 years it was held. She also volunteered for Cancer Care Northwest mentoring women recently diagnosed with Breast cancer. She and her husband traveled extensively together. They enjoyed going on Rod Runs throughout the US and western Canada especially to her favorite park Yellowstone. They took a cruise down the Mississippi River which was a lifelong dream of hers. They enjoyed traveling around the southwest and seeing as much and as many national parks as possible. On three winter trips to the Gulf Coast they camped and explored from Brownsville Texas all the way to Key West Florida. And after each trip they were still talking to each other (64/38).She was an active member of Assumption Catholic Parish and her faith in God gave her the strength and foundation for who she really was. Although she always had a love for science and nature her life was ruled by the love she had in her heart and the love she felt every day for all her friends and family. She is survived by her husband Lloyd F. "Butch" Reilly of Nine Mile Falls, her son Matthew (Kellie Dawn) Reilly and her daughter Amanda (Wilson) Draper, her three amazing grandchildren who she delighted in daily, Mason and Myla Reilly, and Elbie Draper, her twin sister and best friend Linda (Richard) Cook of Spokane Valley, and her brother Mike (Jeanette) Prunty of Temecula CA. She is preceded in death by her father William H. Prunty and mother Mary Jane Prunty O'Neill.

She will be constantly missed, but her inspiration strength and love will surround us forever. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to, St. Margaret's Shelter or the Poor Claire Nuns of Spokane.