Roberta Jean Paul Jacobsen

Bobbie was born at the Cascade Sanitarium in Leavenworth, Washington in 1933. She died peacefully during her daily afternoon nap on July 19, 2025. She was the fifth, and youngest, child of Bert M Paul and Mary Boston Paul. She spent her early childhood on the Skookum Dairy in Peshastin with her siblings, grandparents and 2 families of cousins. Her father moved the family to the Clover Valley Dairy on Long Lake, Port Orchard, Washington when she was 9. Her brother and his ever-increasing flock of sons lived next door. She regularly rowed across Long Lake to meet her best friend. She graduated from South Kitsap High School in 1951 and Washington State College in 1955. Her degree was in Home Economics. The day after graduating from college, she married a newly-minted graduate of the WSC Veterinary School, Paul Jacobsen.

After a couple of years in La Grande and Enterprise, Oregon, they purchased a practice in Shoshone, Idaho, where they lived until Paul’s death in 2023. Their first vet office was attached to the house and clients appeared at the back door day and night. Bobbie managed the office, answered the phone, and communicated with Paul in his pickup by 2-way radio. They had 3 children, Dawna, Doug and Grant. When the boys were 4 and 6 years old, Paul and Bobbie received the devastating news that both of their sons had Duchenne muscular dystrophy and were unlikely to survive past their late teens. She was their full-time caregiver as their mobility decreased and they were confined to wheelchairs. She woke in the middle of the night to reposition them in bed; she bathed them, drove them to school, college classes and basketball games, and summer camp. They both died peacefully, at home, 6 years apart, at age 24 and 28.

She had plenty of other struggles, beginning with a severe episode of post-partum depression with her third child, and bipolar disorder that required treatment with lithium for more than 50 years. Her episodes of symptoms were decades apart and she lived a long, full, and remarkably happy life. She was always the picture of strength, even temper, and humility. She was straight-forward, frugal and honest to a fault.

She and Paul always spent 2 weeks in the winter in some tropical place, aided by members of the community who moved into their house to care for their children while they were away. Most of their trips were to Mexico, Central America, or the Caribbean. When Paul retired, they spent more and more time in Mexico, buying a home in Rincon de Guayabitos in 2002. They lived there for 7 months each year. There, they found another close-knit, welcoming community. For many years, their summers were spent in their Airstream trailer driving dirt roads in Montana in search of places to launch their float tubes for lake flyfishing. Paul always caught the most fish, Bobbie always caught the biggest one. They fished from their tubes well into their 80’s.

Paul and Bobbie were always a team. He told the stories, she corrected the details. He spoke Spanish to anyone who would listen. She never spoke a word, but understood at least as much as he did. He talked endlessly about what he was reading, politics, local farmers, and current events. She listened to every word. Bobbie rarely offered an opinion, so when she did it was respected. She loved puzzles, bridge, Scrabble and visits with friends. She never wanted to make a fuss or draw attention to herself. When Paul died, she had to consider what she wanted, for the first time since her teens. She spent her last years gazing out at Liberty Bay in Poulsbo, Washington. There, she enjoyed the birds, working on her puzzles, making new friends and not cooking. She died as she lived: no drama, no fuss.

She is survived by daughter Dawna Kramer, MD (Monte). Grandchildren Grant (Cherry) Kramer, Alexa Kramer, Geneva (Abraham) Waite and 4 great grandchildren. Her family is eternally grateful to those who helped care for her in the last few years, specifically Dr. Zachary Moriarty in Twin Falls and the staff at Liberty Shores Retirement Community in Poulsbo.

No service will be held. 

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the CSI Foundation. Please make your check payable to the CSI Foundation and reference: Paul Jacobsen Family Endowment in the memo line. This scholarship supports students from Lincoln County high schools studying fields related to agriculture or healthcare.