Obituary of Elizabeth Anne Eriksen

Elizabeth Anne Eriksen lost her battle with breast cancer in Houston on the early morning of Tuesday, October 24, 2017. Born in Boston on April 20, 1967, she grew up in various places around the United States, predominantly the Clear Lake area here in Houston; McLean, VA near Washington, D.C.; and Schenectady, NY; but for the last 30 years she considered Houston home. A graduate of the University of Houston with a bachelor’s degree in Technical Writing, she had additional specialized training in videography and fashion design. Over the course of her life, she held a wide range of jobs, such as administrative assistant, bartender, business marketer, car salesman, courier, handyman, massage therapist, music teacher, and technical writer—all of which gave her a wealth of experience and contributed to her self-confidence. For the last several years, she worked as a private piano teacher. She was very intelligent and, long before the age of Google, had an unerring Key Map of Houston in her head. She was also an accomplished pianist, seamstress, singer, and artist. But she will be remembered most for her uninhibited joy of life (including her ability to burst spontaneously into song), her optimism, her love of children and of animals, particularly cats, and the happiness that she brought to those around her. She was a devoted mother and aunt, a loving sister and daughter, and a loyal friend. She is survived by her son, Loren Scott Christensen; his father, Glen Christensen; her parents, Chris and Elizabeth Knudsen of Alexandria, VA; her older brother Scott Knudsen and sister-in-law Jennifer Pease of Alexandria, VA; her sister Holly Knudsen Varner, brother-in-law Michael, nephews Aaron and Ben, and niece Ruth of Pearland, TX; her younger brother, Eric Knudsen, sister-in-law, Deborah, and nephews Max and Grey of ­­­­Montclair, NJ. She also leaves an aunt, Holly Leavitt, of Jacksonville, FL, and cousins David Leavitt, Jr. of Colorado Springs, Chris Leavitt of Jacksonville and Tom Leavitt of Portland, Oregon; cousins John Moncrief, Jr. of Houston, Chris Moncrief of Dallas, and Sidi Moncrief of Houston; an aunt, Mary Margaret Ramsey, of Lubbock, and cousin Louis Frank Rothenberg of Annandale, VA. She is also remembered by many, many friends, including Marilyn Correia of Pearland and Mary Dubois of Lake Mary, Florida, both friends since college, and Betty Davis of Houston. She will be deeply missed.

Elizabeth’s family would like to thank Dr. Julie Nangia, Dr. Matthew Ellis, and Nurse Practitioners Reida and Mary of Baylor College of Medicine; Dr. Anneliese Gonzalez of UT Health; and Houston Hospice for their care and support of Elizabeth over the past 19 months.  The family would also like to thank Renee Waghalter and Dave O’Brien for sharing their home with Elizabeth and giving her support during the latter part of her illness.

Elizabeth was a member of Grace Bible Church at 13700 Schroeder Rd, Houston 77070 (off Tomball Parkway) and will be remembered there in a memorial service on December 16, 2017 @ 11 am.  In lieu of flowers, please donate to The National Breast Cancer Foundation.