Baker City, Oregon
Emily Irene Wiester, 88, of Issaquah, Wash., a former Baker City resident, died Feb. 24, 2003, at her home.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Friday at St. Madeleine Sophie Roman Catholic Church in Bellevue, Wash.
Irene was born on Jan. 26, 1915, in Prineville to Mary and Edward Street. Her parents moved to California shortly after she was born. Irene attended the University of Washington at Seattle as a freshman. There she met Harold Wiester.
After graduation from the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in dietetics, she returned to the Northwest in 1938 as a dietetic intern at St. Joseph’s hospital in Tacoma. Subsequently she worked at Doctor’s Hospital in Seattle.
Harold and Irene were married in 1939 and had three children while they lived at Edmonds, Wash.
They set out on a farming adventure to Baker City in 1951. Irene worked as a caseworker for the Department of Human Services in Baker City for 22 years before she and Harold retired. They then moved to Lake Havasu, Ariz., where they enjoyed the sun and many rounds of golf. In order to be closer to family, Irene and Harold moved back to the Seattle area in 1995.
Irene was a lifelong member of the Catholic Church. She belonged to the American Dietetics Association and the Baker and Lake Havasu Elks lodges.
Family was very important to Irene. She was a constant source of inspiration to her offspring for her sharp mind and determination. She remained mentally alert her entire life and enjoyed family gatherings, travel and lattes.
Survivors include a son, Stephen H Wiester of Anchorage, Alaska; daughters, Lorene A. Colton of Baker City, and Sharon M. Burke of Redmond, Wash.; 10 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.
Memorial contributions may be made to Swedish Hospice, Swedish Medical Center, Seattle, WA 98122-4307.
Friends are invited to share memories and sign the family’s online guest book at :
www.flintofts.com http://www.flintofts.com/
Arrangements are under the direction of Flintoft’s Issaquah Funeral Home.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, February 28, 2003
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor