Baker City, Oregon
Alice M. Bunce, 75, a longtime Baker City resident, died May 9, 2001, at St. Luke’s Hospital in Boise.
There will be celebration of life service for her at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Gray’s West & Co. Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave. Pastor Elwain McKeen of the First Church of the Nazarene will officiate. Visitations will be for family only.
Mrs. Bunce was born on Dec. 2, 1925, at Lucas, Ohio, to George and Alice Williams Cunningham. She had two brothers and five sisters, who all preceded her in death.
She attended South Kitsap High School at Port Orchard, Wash. She was 16 when she married Kenneth L. Bunce in 1941, and later the mother of three children. Through her early years, she worked as a nurse’s aid in hospitals and nursing homes. She also worked as a waitress, always waiting on and helping those in need.
She and her husband purchased a “ma and pop” operation in the late ‘60s, which included a convenience store, gas station, saw shop and wrecking yard in Washington. To be closer to family, they moved to Baker City in 1974. Mrs. Bunce busied herself for years with large vegetable gardens, canning and natural foods, which she generously shared with family and friends.
When the garden was not in season, her creative passion didn’t slow down. She was an accomplished seamstress, making treasured items out of patches of material. She marked, cut, pressed and sewed anything from diapers to quilts and dresses and tailored suits.
Along with her devotion to family and friends, she also worked tirelessly at the Baker Food Co-op. She became very well known for her knowledge of foods, herbs, teas and vitamins. Being idle was not in her nature. She also volunteered at St. Elizabeth Hospital and at the Baker Senior Center.
With a tremendously generous heart and a passion for giving, she will be remembered for her determination and her ability to get things done. She was always giving to those around her and asking nothing in return.
Her quick temper and wit brought alive many stories that will be cherished by all who knew her. Her laughter, wit, humor and knowledge will be missed, but remembered because “Shotgun Bunce” is written in their history and their lives.
Survivors include her husband, Kenneth Bunce of Baker City; her children, Alice Saul of Haines, George Bunce of Whiteland, Ind., and Vicki Culver of Seattle, Wash.; 11 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her siblings and her parents.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association through Gray’s West & Co., P.O. Box 726, Baker City, OR 97814.
Used with permission from: The Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, May 18, 2001
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor