Elda and Ray Behm (pronounced "beam") moved into their 'Paradise Garden' in the mid-1960s. Thirty years later, after large amounts of love and care, Elda's garden had indeed become a Paradise. As properties in the neighborhood were purchased by the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to make room for a third runway, Elda and Ray's garden became a green oasis in an expanding desert. The day finally came when the airport wanted the Behm's property but Elda refused to leave without her beloved garden. After two years of searching a site was found next to the North SeaTac Community Center. Construction on the new Botanical Garden began in April 2000. On Mother's Day, May 14, 2000, Ray Behm passed away at the age of 90. Elda's plants were relocated during the winter of 2000/2001. After our lunch at the Marriott Tara, Bill and I spent several pleasant hours at the garden. The bees were having a party that day and were all over this plant. Elda Behm, mother and first caretaker of the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden, passed away at the age of 95 on July 14, 2008.