Baker City, Oregon
Evelyn Ruth Anderson, 80, of Baker City, who pioneered the 4-H horse program, died Nov. 10, 2004, at St. Alphonsus Hospital in Boise.
Her memorial service was Friday at the Cornerstone Baptist Church in North Powder.
She was born on Sept. 15, 1924, at San Francisco. She enjoyed many careers in her lifetime, some of which included working as a computer operator, phone system administrator, elementary school secretary and nurses assistant. But the true love of her life was horses.
She successfully lobbied to have horses accepted as a legitimate 4-H project in the 1950s. She had one of the first all-horse 4-H clubs in the United States, and organized trail rides, playdays and fairs. She loved each child and teen who came her way.
She also never missed a single basketball game for the fours years that some of the 4-H kids played on the Selah High School team in the late ’50s and early ’60s. She was affectionately known as “coach.”
She was an avid gardener and made every house in which she lived a home. She was always up for an adventure, such as being a part of the Medford Oregon Sheriff’s Posse, and she was part of the search and rescue team.
In 1976, Evelyn was one of the walkers in the Centennial re-enactment of the Oregon Trail covered-wagon trip which took two weeks and ended in Ashland. She was a hard worker, she loved kids and she touched many people’s lives with her lively conversation, free advice and positive attitude. She will be greatly missed.
Her family expressed appreciation to the nurses and staff in the Critical Intensive Care Unit and Critical Care Unit of St. Alphonsus Hospital and especially to Dr. Kevin Clifford.
Survivors include her husband of 64 years, James R. Anderson; daughters, Carolyn Flynn of Haines and Lynda and her husband, Jim Rider, of Gig Harbor, Wash.; a sister, June Martin of Medford; grandchildren, Melody and her husband, Michael Hanna, of Medford, Randy and his wife, Lisa Reed, of Pasadena, Calif., Lisa and her husband, Mike Smith, of Liberty, S.C., Marlene Chapple and her fiance, Mo, of Pendleton, Monette and her husband, Clint, of Haines, Lloyd Rider and his fiance, Vicki, of Port Orchard, Wash., Tom Reynolds of Chicago, Anna and her husband, Bob, of Chicago, and Jon and his wife, Jennifer, of Silver City, N.M.; and 17 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Baker City Senior Center, where Evelyn thoroughly enjoyed the fellowship and the food.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, November 12, 2004
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor