Sheila LeAnn Daigle Dunlap

Sheila LeAnn Daigle Dunlap, age 60, of North Bend, OR died peacefully at Oregon Health Sciences University Medical Center in Portland, OR on September 19, 2024, following a long illness.

LeAnn was born on October 14, 1963, in Bolivar, TN to Betty Daigle Hastings and the late Rev George Andrew Daigle. She was a 1981 graduate of Henry County High School, and briefly attended Austin Peay State University.

LeAnn married her high school sweetheart, Freddie “Fred” Thomas Dunlap after high school who survives, and was a supportive military wife as Fred was assigned to military posts in Kentucky, Texas, Germany, and Oklahoma. Her chronic illness required a medical reassignment, and the family moved to Fort Sam Houston, Texas. LeAnn continued her battles with her illness and worked for the Department of the Army in a clerical role for a while. Fred retired from the military in 1996.

The family moved to Oregon and LeAnn took on the added role of a police officer’s spouse as Fred was hired as an Oregon State Trooper. They moved to the Coos Bay Area and her strong and undying support was the catalyst in his continued success as a Trooper. 

LeAnn deeply loved her friends and family, as she was a devoted mother and a grandmother. She loved teaching her grandson to read and taught him a love of the planets and stars. She was wholly involved in his daily lessons during pandemic school closures. 

LeAnn loved the Lord, loved music, and sang and played keyboard and piano when she was able. She attended Shoreline Community Church in North Bend. She volunteered and had been a member of the hospital auxiliary at Bay Area Hospital in Coos Bay.

LeAnn loved reading, she loved flowers, loved her yard swing and working in her yard. She enjoyed baking, canning and cooking. She enjoyed crocheting and needlework and doted on the family pets. 

LeAnn’s positive attitude and her determination concerning her illness did not go unnoticed. She faced each new challenge with fierce determination and offered support to others sharing the same illnesses. She endured multiple surgeries and countless medical procedures but always took time to teach nursing and medical students about her condition.

She is survived by her mother, Betty Daigle Hastings of Paris, TN; her husband, Freddie “Fred” Thomas Dunlap of North Bend, OR; her daughter, April Candace Dunlap of Castle Rock, CO; and her grandson, Steven Ryan Thomas Dunlap of North Bend, OR. 

LeAnn was preceded in death by her father, Rev. George Andrew Daigle; her brother, Edward “Eddie” Paul Daigle; and her sister, Tamela “Tammy” Darlene White.

Arrangements are being handled by Ridgeway Funeral Home, 201 Dunlap Street/PO Box 788, Paris, TN 38242. Visitation will be Saturday, September 28, 2024, from 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm at Ridgeway Funeral Home, and continue Sunday, September 29, 2024, from 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm. The funeral service will be Sunday, September 29, 2024, at 2:00 pm at Ridgeway Funeral Home, with Donald Franks officiating.

Burial will be in Olive Branch Cemetery in Cottage Grove, TN.