Sharon Gossett

Sharon Rae (Dafforn) Gossett, 75, of Ephrata, Washington, died July 26, 2026, at her home, surrounded by her family.

She was born March 4, 1951, in Bremerton, Washington, to William and Marguerite Dafforn, the oldest of four children. She grew up in Longview, Washington and graduated from Mark Morris High School in 1969. As a young woman she attended an evangelistic meeting in Longview and gave her life to Christ. She understood everything that followed – her marriage, her family, her work, and her service – as a response to God’s grace and mercy.

Sharon attended Lower Columbia College before transferring to Washington State University, where she earned a degree in education in 1973 and met David Gossett, from Ephrata. They were married Nov. 2, 1974, in Pullman.

After Dave completed college and a brief stint with the WSU Extension Service, the couple settled in Ephrata and started a family farm. Sharon had no natural affection for dirt, early mornings, heavy equipment or chaos of any kind, but she faithfully supported the farm for 40 years, keeping the books, feeding the family, running around the Columbia Basin for parts and the myriad other tasks needed to get the job done.

Her truest calling was motherhood. She raised three sons in a home saturated by her faith, with morning devotionals and a mother’s patient refusal to stop asking her boys the questions that mattered.

At Ephrata First Baptist Church, now Gracepoint, Sharon served for many years as a mentor mom in MOPS, volunteered in the church nursery, played percussion on the worship team and served as a Stephen Minister. Her faith did not stay inside the church building; she cared for neighbors, friends and employees, and fed a long succession of her sons’ college friends. Those who knew her reach, almost without exception, for the same description: a gentle and quiet spirit, and a beautiful smile.

She was a lifelong maker – oil painting, cross-stitch, crochet, dozens of quilts, a garden she tended for decades, and in later years hundreds of knitted lambs and “monsters” given away to expectant mothers and grandchildren. She delighted in her grandchildren without reservation. She skied for decades despite a genuine fear of heights and a firm dislike of cold, because her family and her friends were on the mountain.

Sharon was diagnosed with ALS in early 2025. She knitted until her hands would no longer allow it; one of her final projects was pillows for her grandkids to remind them of her love. She was cared for at home by her husband and by a wide circle of friends and neighbors.

She is survived by her husband of 51 years David Gossett of Ephrata; her sons Benjamin (Allison) Gossett of Shoreline, Washington, James (Dara) Gossett of Centennial, Colorado and Mark (Julie) Gossett of Charlotte, North Carolina; eight grandchildren: Ivy, Isaac, Ezra, Elizabeth, Ruth, Lucy, Samuel, and Phoebe; her brothers Martin Dafforn of Bellevue, Washington, and Glenn Dafforn of Kingwood, Texas; and her sister Carol Spires of Camano Island, Washington.

She was preceded in death by her parents, William and Marguerite Dafforn.

A service will be held Saturday, Aug. 15, at 11 a.m. at Community Church of Ephrata.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the ALS Service Organization - ALSSO Spokane.

Arrangements are under the care of Nicoles Funeral Home of Ephrata, Washington.