The community is grieving after the wife of the former Cowlitz County sheriff passed away on Friday.

Mark Nelson wrote that his wife, Patty Nelson, passed away unexpectedly in the morning. He said she had been struggling health-wise for a few years. Nelson wrote, “Her faith in Jesus has been a foundation for her through her health struggles, and now she is with Him. That knowledge is so joyful for me now that it takes some of the edge off the pain of loss I’m feeling.”

Mark Nelson said there will be a memorial service, but the when and the where are currently unknown; he said he would keep people posted.