Baker City, Oregon
Rosetha O. Ford, 69, died Nov. 26, 2000, at St. Elizabeth Health Care Center.
Her funeral was at the St. Elizabeth Chapel. Pastor Roger Scovil of the Baker City Christian church officiated. Burial was in Mount Hope Cemetery. There was a reception after the service at St. Elizabeth Health Services.
Mrs. Ford was born on June 25, 1931, in the Yakima Valley to Larcie and Margaret Shelton Patterson. She spent most of her childhood on the Yakama Indian Reservation.
She married Elbert “Red” Ford on her birthday in 1953 at Reno, Nev. They moved to Redding, Calif. They built a house in the area and lived there for several years before moving back to Washington to be near Mr. Ford’s aging parents.
The family moved to Pendleton in 1963 where Mr. Ford worked at Harris Pine Mills. Later they both worked for several years as truck drivers, a job Mrs. Ford truly loved.
After leaving her trucking job, she worked as an apartment and motel manager until poor health forced her to retire.
Her hobbies were reading, playing chess, sewing and gardening. She made quilts, rugs, clothing (including a couple of suits), stuffed animals and upholstered furniture.
Mrs. Ford liked to spend time in the outdoors with her family. She took her sons fishing and berry picking and she taught them to drive. Her enthusiasm for blackberry picking was such that she occasionally needed to be rescued.
She was fond of holidays and would spend days cooking in preparation for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
She was preceded in death by her husband.
Survivors include her sons, Michael and Mark; a daughter-in-law, Carol; and a brother, Virgil Patterson.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association through Gray’s West & Co., P.O. Box 726, Baker City, Ore., 97814.
Used with permission from: The Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, December 8, 2000
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor