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EUNICE SEIBEL
Eunice Laverne Seibel, 81, died Sept. 27, 2000, in Walla Walla, Washington.
She was born June 14, 1919, in Enterprise to John and Etta (Ogbourne) Gribling. She attended local schools and graduated from Enterprise High School. She married
John Seibel on Sept. 6, 1942, in Walla Walla, WA, where they made their home and raised their family. Mr. Seibel preceded her in death in 1983. Mrs. Seibel was a homemaker.
She is survived by daughter Susan Wheeler of Walla Walla, WA; sons Ron Seibel, Sr., of San Juan Bautista, Calif., Steve Seibel of Lake Tahoe, Nev., and Richard Seibel of San Diego, CA; sister Gladys Murphy of Enterprise; and four grandchildren, Sarah Wheeler of Walla Walla, WA, Ron Seibel, Jr. of Kirkland, WA, Chris Seibel of Santa Barbara, Calif., and Jeff Seibel of Santa Barbara, Calif.
She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband.
Private family interment will be held at a later date. Contributions may be made to American Lung Association through Herring Groseclose Funeral Home, Inc., 315 W. Alder St., Walla Walla, WA 99362-2870
PHYLLIS BOTTS
Phyllis M. Botts, 72, died Thursday, Sept. 21, 2000, in Ashland.
Phyllis was born January 7, 1928, in Enterprise to Floyd and Ethel (Eggleson) Zollman. She attended Enterprise schools and graduated from Enterprise High School in 1945. She married
Bradford B. Botts in 1946 and they moved to Ashland in 1947.
Phyllis worked as a dental assistant for 25 years before retiring. She enjoyed playing bridge and flower gardening and was a long time member of the Ladies Elks.
She is survived by her husband Brad and sons Monte and Craig, all of Ashland; brothers Orville Zollman of Medford, Kenneth Zollman of Peoria, Ariz., and Bud Zollman and Myrle Zollman of Joseph; sisters Florence Montgomery of Phoenix, Ariz., and Jean Rametes of Gold Hill; four grandchildren; and one great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by three sisters and two brothers.
A private interment was held Sept. 25, 2000, in Ashland. No service is planned.
Memorial contributions may be made to Ashland Elks Lodge #944, Bob Wagner Fund, PO Box 569, Ashland OR 97520.
CLARENCE STONEBRINK
Clarence J. Stonebrink, 92, passed away Sept. 24, 2000, at Wallowa Valley Care Center in Enterprise. Clarence was born Oct. 19, 1907, near Dayton, the first of 14 children born to George W. Stonebrink and Grace E. Edwards. When Clarence was three years old, the family moved to the Leap area of Wallowa County, where they lived and farmed until 1921.
In May 1921 the Stonebrink family moved to northeastern New Mexico. On the move, at age 13, Clarence drove a four-horse team and wagon. His mother drove their Model T Ford, bringing the smaller children, while his father and younger brother drove the other livestock and wagon. This trip took 90 days. Clarence farmed and did custom combining with his father until 1928 when he married
Lettie Mae Worley; they were later divorced. Six children were born, and one daughter preceded him in death in 1934.
Due to the drought and dust bowl in New Mexico, in 1933 Clarence moved his family with horses and wagon to Steamboat Springs, Colo., where they resided and farmed until 1941, when the family moved to Oregon and settled on a farm near Yamhill. Here he was also involved in his own logging operations in the Willamette Valley. In 1953, Clarence moved back to the Leap area of Wallowa County where he has been involved in farming and ranching ever since.
In 1955, he married
Vera E. Larsen, who preceded him in death in 1997.
Clarence joined the Odd Fellows Lodge at Grenville, N.M., in 1929, and was a Past Noble Grand of both the Odd Fellows Lodges at Yamhill and Enterprise. At age 57 he achieved a life-long dream of learning to fly a plane and was a member of the Chief Joseph Flyers Club. Another hobby was playing the guitar and for about 30 years he went once a week to play old-time music with other musicians for the folks at the Wallowa County Nursing Home.
He is survived by four brothers, Clyde of Enterprise, Roy of Yamhill, Earl of Newberg, and Berle of Washougal, WA; five sisters, Gladys Biffle of Clayton, N.M., Viola Miller of Craig, Colo., Nina Borroz of Vancouver, WA, and Geneva Hodges and Frances Tessman, of Newberg; daughter Ethel Miller of Spanaway, WA; sons Wayne of Yamhill, James and Donald of Wallowa, and Glen of Dallas; a stepdaughter, Joyce Morton of McMinnville; and numerous grandchildren, step-grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held Oct. 7, 2000, at Bollman Funeral Home at 10 a.m., with vault internment at the Enterprise cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to the charity of choice in care of Bollman Funeral Home, 315 W. Main St., Enterprise OR 97828.
Elmer I. Gregerson
Elmer I Gregerson, 93, a resident of the Forest Grove community, died Tuesday morning, Jan. 9, 2001, at the Jennings-McCall II Assisted Living Center in Forest Grove.
Elmer Ivan Gregerson was born Dec. 15, 1907, in Badger, Minn., the son of Emil and Inga (Johnson) Gregerson. He was raised and received his education in the Badger community.
While living in Minnesota, Elmer and his brothers worked the family farm, just south of Badger. After moving to the Enterprise/Wallowa area, Elmer worked as a logger and later in the local mills for a time before going to work as a custodian for the Wallowa School District. Elmer retired in 1969.
Elmer was a member of the Grace Lutheran Church in Enterprise. Among his interests, he enjoyed vegetable gardening, especially growing tomatoes. Elmer also enjoyed working with leather, making billfolds and belts.
He was preceded in death by his parents and seven brothers.
Survivors include his wife, Arnolda L. Gregerson, of Forest Grove; a stepson and daughter-in-law, Orvin R. and Donna Erickson of Beaverton; a brother, Alvin Gregerson of Badger, Minn.; a sister, Clarice Peterson of Roseau, Minn.; a granddaughter, Janel Boyer of Forest Grove ; three great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2001, at 11 a.m. at the Forest Grove Memorial Chapel, with Pastor Ron McCallum of the Emanuel Lutheran Church in Cornelius, officiating. Private Internment will be held at the Forest View cemetery in Forest Grove.
The family suggests that remembrances may be contributions to the American Cancer Society, 0330 SW Curry Street, Portland OR 97201 or to the American Diabetes Association, 380 SE Spokane Street, Suite 110, Portland, Oregon 97202, in his memory.
Forest Grove Memorial Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.
CLARA SURBER
Clara R. Surber, 68, a resident of the Forest Grove community, died Monday, Dec. 4, 2000, at her home in Forest Grove of natural causes.
Clara was born Feb. 2, 1932, in Farmington, Utah, to the late Austin Rice and Annie Lucina Stewardt Rice. She was raised and educated in Farmington, being the oldest of 11 children. In 1947 she moved with her family to Vernonia and attended school there for several years.
In 1954 she moved to Portland and 10 years later moved to Ontario where she worked 27 years for Ore-Ida Foods. In 1993 she moved with her husband, Earl, to Forest Grove.
Clara was married
to Earl R. Surber in 1980. Clara was a past president of the VFW Post #5233 in Forest Grove, a past president of District Six as well as the Ontario Auxiliary. She was a member of the LDS church in Forest Grove.
Survivors include her husband, Earl of Forest Grove; her mother Annie Lucina Rice of Forest Grove; a son and daughter-in-law, James V. and Barbara Sharp and daughter, Mary Anne Sharp, all of Ontario; six brothers, Lynn Rice of Cornelius, Lemuel and wife Patsy Rice of Tillamook, Tom and wife Yvonne Rice of Forest Grove, Glenn and wife Colleen Rice of Kaysville, Utah, Austin and Orabelle Rice of Kaysville, Utah, and Irving Rice of Portland; four sisters; Margaret Kouva of Portland, May and husband Chris Criswell of Oceanside, Calif., Myrtle and husband Robert Montgomery of Hemet, Calif., and Carol and husband Henry Kent of Forest Grove; six grandchildren; 33 nieces and nephews; 100 great-nieces and nephews, and one great-great nephew.
She was preceded in death by her father Austin; three nephews, Joseph Rice, Michael Josephson, and Richard Sargent; and two great nephews.
Funeral services were Dec. 8, 2000, in Cottage Grove. The family suggests that remembrances may be contributions to the American Diabetes Association, 6915 SW Macadam Blvd., #130, Portland, OR 97219.
JACK SPOELSTRA
God saw he was getting tired, a cure was not to be. So he put his arms around him and whispered, "come with me". With tearful eyes we watched him suffer and saw him fade away. Although we loved him dearly we could not make him stay. A golden heart stopped beating, hard working hands to rest. God broke our hearts to prove to us, He only takes the best.
Jack Spoelstra: January 19, 1914 to December 8, 2000.
Survivors are wife Inez Spoelstra, daughter Janice Hileman and other relatives.
Memorial contributions may be made in his name to the Wallowa Meal Site c/o Bollman Funeral Home, 315 W. Main St., Enterprise OR 97828.
HELEN HOPKINS
Helen Hopkins of Joseph died at her home Dec. 1, 2000.
Helen was born on March 30, 1930, in Enterprise to Armand and Leoncie Vigne. Helen was raised on the family sheep ranch at Chesnimnus with her five sisters and one brother. She attended Joseph High School where she graduated in 1947.
She was a princess on the 1947 Chief Joseph Days court, and princess on the Elgin Stampede court in 1948. She attended nursing school in Baker City. After graduating Helen worked in La Grande, The Azores Islands, and Wallowa Memorial Hospital, where she retired. She then worked at Alpine House in Joseph as its nurse.
Survivors include sons Jeff of Loma, Colo., William (Bill) of Joseph and Mark of Portland; sisters Louise Kellerman of Joseph, Gladys Fleenor of Enterprise and Dora Heasty of Elgin; four grandchildren; and one great grandchild.
A Celebration of Life will be held next April at the Enterprise cemetery.
Donations can be made to the Joseph Chamber Memorial Scholarship Fund c/o the Joseph Chamber of Commerce.
ELOINE STEPHENS
Eloine LaRose "Stevie" died August 23, 2000, at the home of her daughter Darlene Conyers in Granite Falls, Washington. She was born March 26, 1914 in Elgin to Montia and Effie Joe Witty.
Her early years were spent in the Elgin and Cove area. As a teenager the family moved to Pendleton where she graduated from Pendleton High School in 1932. She attended college in La Grande. In 1933, she married
Lawrence Stephens who proceeded her in death in 1995. Their later years were spent in The Dalles.
As a young woman she enjoyed the job of exercising race horses owned by her father. Born today Stevie would have had the option of becoming a jockey. She worked for many years as a waitress in Joseph, Umatilla, and The Dalles. She was active for many years as PTA president, school board member, went through all the offices of the Rebecca Lodge, and served as president of the Columbia chapter of the Oregon Council of the Blind for several years.
She is survived by one son, Montia Stephens, The Dalles, three daughters, Darlene Conyers and husband Wayne of Granite Falls, WA, Sheila Biegel and husband Bob of Pendleton, and Laurel Deardorff and husband Gary of Glendale, Ariz., sister-in-law Jerry Robertson of Klamath Falls, and one aunt, Esther Witty Dunn, of Modesto, Calif. She was very affectionately known as "Mother" to her 17 grandchildren, 38 great grandchildren and nine great great grandchildren.
She was proceeded in death by her husband of 62 years, Lawrence M. Stephens, a brother, Robert Lee Witty, parents Montia V. and Effie J. Witty, a grandson, Brian Deardorff, and a great granddaughter, Roxanne Biegel.
Services were held at Olney cemetery in Pendleton. Memorial contributions can be made to the Diabetes Association or the Gideons International in care of Bishop Chapel, Pendleton, Ore.
DARLENE KING
Darlene Willa Vernette (Fox) King passed away July 29, 2000, in California. She was born Sept. 27, 1908, in Omaha Neb. to Hatti Selma (McCoy) Fox and Leon Paul Fox.
Darlene attended Lodi Academy in Lodi, Calif., where she met Harold King and was married
on Dec. 21, 1925, in San Francisco, Calif. She worked for Sacramento High School in the cafeteria and volunteered for senior meals at Lulac for many years. Darlene was very knowledgeable in antiques and collectable. She enjoyed selling them at the Farmers Market and at her home. Darlene spent several summers in Wallowa with Merrill and Betty King.
Darlene is survived by her sons, Merrill and wife Betty of West Sacramento, Calif., Presley and wife Barbara of Orangeville, Calif., sister Juanita Arnold of Cottonwood, Calif., brother Lloyd Fox of Napa, sister-in-law Clarice Lashley of Darington, WA, 12 grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren, and one great great grandchild. She was preceded in death by her husband, William Harold King, grandson, Robert King, and brothers Theodore (Ted) and Roland Fox.
LEONARD CORNWELL
Leonard L. Cornwell, 84, died August 22, 2000, of natural causes. He was born January 27, 1916, in Gordon, Neb. to Iver Lester and Winnie J.( Davies) Cornwell. He married
Eloise (Haggerty) on July 5, 1938. He was a mechanic and retired from the Wallowa County Road Department in 1978. He also owned and operated Mobile Station/Bulk Plant Sand and Gravel Business and the Cornwell Brothers Tire Service.
He is survived by his wife Eloise of Enterprise, daughter Judi and her husband Terry of Enterprise, brothers Jack and Arnold of Joseph, two grandchildren, five great grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers Don and Kenneth, and sisters Thelma Morgan and Mildred Stone.
The family suggests donations to the Wallowa County EMT Association, or Home Hospice, c/o Bollman Funeral Home, 315 W.Main St., Enterprise, Or 97828.
MARLYN McCORMACK
Marlyn J. McCormack, 71, passed away Aug. 24, 2000, at his home in Milton-Freewater. Mr McCormack was born July 1, 1929, in Enterprise, the son of Bert and Barbara Sasser McCormack. He was the youngest son and was born in the same house as his father was born in on Alder Slope near Enterprise in 1888. His grandfather, William McCormack, was the first white settler in Wallowa County in 1871.
Marlyn attended grammar school at Alder Slope and high school in Enterprise, graduating in 1947. After his schooling he worked on ranches around Enterprise until the late 1950s. He then moved to Milton-Freewater, and a few years later moved to the Othello-Yakima, WA, area. He worked for the city of Othello as an animal control officer until 1991 at which time he retired and moved back to Milton-Freewater. On June 20, 1970, he married
Gloe Propeck Kelly in Milton-Freewater. Mrs. McCormack preceded him in death on July 29, 1982, in Othello, Washington.
Mr. McCormack is survived by three brothers, William McCormack and Doyle McCormack, both of Milton-Freewater, and Delbert McCormack of Atlanta, Georgia, and several nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by three sisters, Arlene Ruth McCormack, Carol McCormack, Dorothy Heskett and a brother, Roy McCormack
Memorial services will be held at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to the charity of the donor's choice through the Munsell-Rhodes Funeral Home, 902 S. Main, Milton-Freewater, OR 97862.
GLADYS COFFIN
Gladys Coffin passed away at her home in Enterprise, Ore., on Monday, Sept. 4, 2000, at the age of 95.
She was the youngest of seven children, born October 6, 1904, to William Ellsworth Crowder and Mary Ellen Jordan Crowder in Bethany, Illinois.
Gladys was raised on the family’s 90-acre farm in central Illinois and attended elementary school and high school in Bethany.
She attended the Presbyterian Church in Bethany, and sang in a girls quartet for seven years, performing at political campaigns, government bond sales for World War I, church and school programs. She also played cello in the high school orchestra.
Gladys graduated from high school in 1922 and enrolled the following year at the University of Pittsburgh, which she attended for one year. The following year she attended Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois, a “self-help” college in Bethany where she completed her sophomore requirements. There she helped pay for her tuition by serving the faculty table at mealtime and tutoring the president’s polio-stricken daughter in seventh and eighth grade work.
Following her sophomore year, from 1924 to 1925, Gladys got a job teaching at a country school three miles from Bethany to earn enough money to complete her college education. Two years later she graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a bachelor’s degree in English and a minor in history.
During the fall of her senior year at the University of Wisconsin she met Gwen T. Coffin, who was completing prerequisites for law school. The couple was married
November 10, 1928, in Madison, Wisconsin. In later years, the date of the couple’s wedding anniversary became a running family joke, as inevitably Gwen was off elk hunting in Bear Creek canyon out of Wallowa at that time.
In 1928, the couple lived in Bethany, where both taught high school. They subsequently moved to Webster, South Dakota, where Gwen taught history, math, and public speaking.
While in South Dakota the Coffins had their first of three children, Nancy, who was born on February 12, 1930.
In 1932, Gwen and Gladys moved to Boulder, Colorado, where Gwen enrolled in law school at the University of Colorado.
After Gwen received his law degree, he and Gladys moved to Springfield, Illinois, where he went to the work for the law firm of Brown, Hay, and Stephens, the direct successor to the Abraham Lincoln law firm.
In 1934, the couple moved to Downers Grove where they remained until 1941. There, the couple’s other two children were born, Gail, on April 30, 1936, and Bill, on December 6, 1937.
In 1941, the Coffin family moved to Enterprise, Ore., where they purchased the Wallowa County Chieftain.
In 1943, Gladys was “drafted” to teach English at Enterprise High School when an acute shortage of teachers developed during World War II. She taught school at Enterprise for two and a half years. She also taught Sunday school for more than 20 years and was active in the American Association of University Women and PEO.
The couple ran the local newspaper business for 30 years while raising their family and taking an active role in their community. They were devout members of the Enterprise Community.
Congregational Church and were instrumental in the construction of Wallowa Memorial Hospital.
In 1963, they purchased a summer home on Quesnel Lake in central British Columbia where they spent most of their summer months in their golden years.
They sold their newspaper business to daughter Gail and son-in-law Don Swart in 1971, which gave them more time for travel, hunting and fishing, and for enjoying their summer home.
Mr. and Mrs. Coffin celebrated 66 years of marriage one month before Mr. Coffin died on December 12, 1994. By that time they had worked side by side since teenage days to finish school, get established in business, raise children, cope with economic ups and downs, and face problems of personal health and sometimes sadness.
Mrs. Coffin grieved the loss of her husband for the remainder of her life. She donated more than $600, 000 in his memory to the Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation, which used the funds to build a new x-ray room and purchase two state-of-the-art ambulances. In 1998, she was received the President’s Award from the Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce on behalf of her contributions to the local hospital, which remained her passion until her death. She was also an avid reader and spent her days reading books on spirituality, which she put to use in counseling the many people who looked up to her for guidance.
She is survived by daughter Nancy Ormandy of Sheridan, Ore., daughter Gail Swart of Wallowa Lake, son Bill Coffin of Enterprise, grandsons Byron Evans of Talent, Ore., Duane Evans of Caldwell, Ore., Vince Evans of Salem, Ore., Rick Swart of Enterprise, Ore., Don Swart, Jr., of Enterprise, Ore., and David Swart of Buckley, WA, granddaughters Linda Ebbert of Port Orchard, WA, Vicky Konopasek of Mosier, Ore., Cindy Greenig of Seattle, WA, Valerie Lancaster of Fort Bragg, Calif., Tina Johnson of La Grande, Ore., Jennifer Kirkeide of Missoula, Mont., Lisa Phillips of Renton, WA, 22 great grandchildren, and many, many friends.
At her request, the family is planning a memorial service the first week in October to coincide with her birthday.
The family asks that anyone who is inclined to make any contributions in her memory do so by making their donations to the Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation, P.O. Box 53, Enterprise, OR 97828 and/or to Enterprise Community Congregational Church, 301 NW 1st St., Enterprise, OR 97828.
