Christina Mitchell passed away on 10 May 2018 at the age of 47 with her husband and family by her side. Christina was born and raised in San Jose, California and attended Leigh High School where she first met her husband Patrick Mitchell. After graduation and a few years of life’s journey under both of their belts, they were married in 1993 and moved to Tennessee where he served in the U.S. Army.
For the next 15 years Christina was an army wife, dealing with the challenges of raising a family with her husband away much of the time, which included 5 combat tours. While holding down the home front she raised their two children, worked as a wedding cake designer, attended night classes in college, and served as a leader in the Family Support Group for 5th Special Forces Group helping other families deal with issues while their spouses were deployed. This included the inevitable losses during combat operations and the difficult aftermath.
During those years Christina became an accomplished and avid scuba diver, logging over 200 dives in locations that ranged from the challenging dark and cold of the Pacific, to the deep wrecks in the Atlantic, and the beautiful coral reefs in the Caribbean Sea. In 2007 they moved to Gig Harbor, WA where the family retired from the military. Christina began her new career as a paralegal and excelled.
She soon began working for the Washington Court of Appeals, Division II and eventually was elevated to Senior Case Manager. She always loved her work and the people that she worked with and for each day. Christina was also a gifted athlete and endurance runner.
She competed in over a dozen marathons and countless shorter distance races. Her marathon achievements included breaking the 4-hour barrier. Additionally, Christina competed in long distance triathlon, also known as Ironman races, that take place over 140.
6 miles and last as long as 17 hours. She eventually completed 5 full Ironman races across the country, consistently finishing in the top third of her age group. Her other hobbies and abilities included being able to sing every word to every disco or 70’s song ever written (seriously); she loved watching tv marathons of reality shows and oldies like I love Lucy and the Golden Girls; and she enjoyed both a pair of muddy running shoes and water bottle belt as much as a pair of designer boots and an expensive handbag.
Christina is survived by her husband Patrick, her son Nicholas, and her daughter Kaitlyn; by her sisters Marci and Angelique; and by her parents Robert and Maricela McCullough. A memorial service will be held at 1 pm on June 2nd, 2018 at the Haven of Rest Chapel.
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