Sumpter, Oregon
Maybelle Laursen, 78, a resident of Deer Creek Road near Sumpter, died Oct. 18, 2002, at her home.
At her request there will be no service. Disposition was by cremation.
Mrs. Laursen was born at Seattle, Wash., on Aug. 8, 1924, a daughter of Albert Alexander and Sarah Durie Sheret. She was raised and educated at Milwaukie.
She started her career as a telephone operator in British Columbia and returned to the United States working for Pacific Northwest Bell as a long-distance operator. She met and married Otto Laursen in 1953 at Portland. They were married 46 years before his death in 1999.
She worked for Pacific Northwest Bell for 29 years before retiring. She moved to Sumpter in 1999 to live with her daughter.
She loved to travel around the world and was a member of the Daughters of Scotia, Oregon Telephone Pioneers and volunteered for the Oregon Public Broadcasting tele-a-thons.
Survivors include her children, Andrea Jasper of Camas, Wash., Sandra Chase of Sumpter and Gary Banzer of Sumpter; grandchildren, James Aaron, Jason, and Krista Chase, Megan and Braden Jasper and Jeri Casanova; and a great-grandchild, Alexis Casanova.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband and one granddaughter.
Memorial contributions may be made to a charity of one’s choice through the Coles Funeral Home, 1950 Place St. Baker City, OR 97814.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, October 25, 2002
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor