Annick Arthemise (Arnault) Case Obituary (1939 - 2020)

Annick Arthemise Case moved on to a new beginning on August 19, 2020, after a life full of love, adventure, and fun. Annick was born to Fernande and Georges Arnault on July 28, 1939, in St. Romain Sur Vienne, a small town in midwestern France. Her childhood was marked by surviving the occupation of France during the Second World War. She remembers having soldiers billeted in her home, bringing food to refugees hiding in the barn, and feeling grateful to the American soldiers, who she said kept her from growing up speaking German. As post-war France staggered to its feet, Annick helped workers find jobs during its reconstruction. In 1960, Annick married Cecil Simmons, an American G.I.. She gave birth to their daughter, Diane, in 1961, then moved to the United States in 1963. Loving being an American, Annick never missed an opportunity to put flags in her window on national holidays. Diane was born with Down syndrome, which led Annick to fight tirelessly with educators and administrators to find support in a world that seemed not to know how to deal with people with developmental disabilities. In 1977, Annick married Rodney Case and moved to Gig Harbor. This created a combined family with four children: Steve, Diane, Kathy, and Jennifer. Eventually, grandchildren Garrett, Jasper, and Christopher joined the loving circle, with Annick proving to be a patient, sparkly, exceptional grandmother. Volunteering was important to Annick. She trained volunteer workers at Fort Lewis, spent many years helping at Gig Harbor senior meal sites, and taught aerobics to seniors. Annick battled with cancer twice. Over 50 years ago, she spent two years in Walter Reed Hospital, unexpectedly surviving with the help of the then-experimental drug methotrexate. (She was the second person to be given methotrexate, and the first one who survived the treatment.) As she put it, she was "the cutest bald-headed, eighty-pound girl you've ever seen". When cancer came for her again, she fought it bravely for several years. She was a fighter, and a force of nature. Annick was predeceased by her parents, brother Hugh, sister Francoise, and daughter Diane. She is survived by sister Louisette, husband Rodney, three children and three grandchildren. Her kindness, generosity, musical accent, and joie de vivre will be greatly missed.