Born in Portland, Or., Kathleen went home with her parents to Seaside, Or. When Kathleen was just six months old, her mom was hospitalized with TB. Kathleen moved in with her grandparents and did not see her mom for three years. Kathleen was very loved and cared for by both sets of grandparents as they lived so close to one another. When her mom healed, she and her mom joined her dad in Elsie, Or. Two brothers eventually joined the family and then the family moved to Vernonia when Kathleen was in the third grade. The family lived there until Kathleen finished her freshman year of high school. During 7th grade, her parents decided to help a child in need and adopted Bruce to join the family. He is 10 years younger than Kathleen and he fit right in! When her dad got transferred again with Crown Zellerbach, Kathleen was 14 and the family moved to Seaside. Her dad was promoted from logger to assistant manager. She graduated from Seaside High School and attended Seattle Pacific College, which is now Seattle Pacific University. She then transferred after two years to Oregon State Univ. and majored in Elementary Education. Kathleen says she learned many life lessons in college and as a result, chose to make some changes and joined a campus ministry in San Jose. After this, she was hired to teach special education on an Indian reservation in Montana for one year. This was a very positive experience. Later she got a job as an aide in a behavior classroom in Park Rose. Here she learned a tremendous amount. Kathleen's grandmother found her a husband during this time. Dave Shelman attended the same church as her grandmother and introduced them. It was love at first sight! They dated just nine months and then married in her parent's wheat field in Molalla. Kathleen got her first full-time teaching job as a reading specialist, teaching three years. She gave birth to a daughter and then two years later, a son. Dave was transferred to Colorado as an architect and they lived there for four years. Kathleen taught nursery school during this time. In 1986, they moved back to Oregon. In 1988 Kathleen began working in the Reynolds School District as a kindergarten teacher, part-time. She later taught first grade. Both her kids went to Corbett Schools K-12 and graduated. She retired in 2013 and has subbed in both the Reynolds and Corbett School District ever since. She mostly volunteers now. She loves to garden, do yard work, hike, kayak and travel. Her and Dave are happy at home with their one dog and two ducks.