Milton Freewater Oregon

Ransom, Paul E. – Obituary

La Grande, Oregon Paul E. Ransom, 83, of La Grande and formerly of Milton-Freewater, died Aug. 8 at Rose Cottage, an adult care center, in Kennewick. A memorial service will begin at 2 p.m. Friday at Mountain View-Colonial DeWitt, 1551 Dalles Military Road, Walla Walla. Pastor Roger Holden will officiate. A reception will follow at the funeral home. Paul was born Sept. 30, 1924, to Ernest and Lou Hahn Ransom in Walla Walla. He attended elementary school on Government Mountain then the Forks School on the Walla Walla River. He started high school in Prescott, Wash. His family then moved … Read more

Akes, Esther Elaine – Obituary

Joseph, Oregon Esther Elaine Akes of Milton-Freewater died June 27, 2006, at Evergreen Nursing Home. She was 86. Mrs. Akes was born August 23, 1919 in Pendleton to James Wallace and Lucia Mae Tilton Spencer. On February 27, 1943, she married Charles Leonard Akes, Sr. at Olympia, Wash. She worked at Boeing Aircraft in Seattle as a “Rosie the Riveter,” putting the metal skin on B-17 bombers, while her husband served overseas during World War II. After the war the couple ranched in Bickleton and Roosevelt, Wash and Mrs. Akes started Oasis Aviaries, marketing her birds in the area. They … Read more

Frison, Donald L. – Obituary

Island City, Oregon Donald L. “Don” Frison, 62, of Island City, died March 30 at his home. Private services will be held at a later date. Don was born Dec. 10, 1945, to Joseph and Alma I. Kluth Frison in Mobridge, S.D. He grew up and attended school in Weston. After his schooling he joined the U.S. Air Force, serving from 1962 to 1966. After his discharge from the service he worked in Portland for the Teamsters Union for 10 years and later for the Operating Engineers Union for 22 years, doing various jobs. He retired from the unions and … Read more

Childers, Dale – Obituary

Milton-Freewater – Dale Childers, 57, of Milton-Freewater, died Sunday, Nov. 13, 1988, at his home. At Childers’ request there will be no funeral service. He was born Aug. 7, 1931, in Wallowa, to Cecil and Thelma Crow Childers. He grew up in the Wallowa Valley and graduated from Joseph High School in 1949. He attended Moler Barber College at Portland, graduating in 1950. Childers owned and operated barbershops at Klamath Falls and Arlington before moving to the Milton-Freewater area in the late 1960s. He operated Dale’s Barber Shop in Milton-Freewater for 20 years. On Nov. 5, 1973, he married Jan … Read more

Sample, Lois L. – Obituary

Wallowa County, Oregon Lois L. Sample died at St. Mary Medical Center in Walla Walla, Wash., July 9, 1987. She was 65. No funeral services were held at her request. Memorial contributions may be made to the Shriner’s Hospital for Crippled Children or the Elks Eye Clinic through Munsell-Rholdes Funeral Home Chapel in Milton-Freewater. Sample was born in Wallowa to Cecil and Thelma (Crow) Childers, on April 29, 1922. She attended schools in Lostine and Joseph, completing high school at Enterprise in 1940. She moved to Weiser, Idaho following high school graduation and attended the National Youth Business College. She … Read more

Sutton, Harold L. – Obituary

La Grande, Oregon Harold L. Sutton, 91, a La Grande resident and a former longtime Elgin resident, died March 22, 2004, at Grande Ronde Hospital in La Grande. His funeral will be Friday at 3:30 p.m. in the Elgin United Methodist Church. Vault interment and concluding services will follow in Summerville. Pastor Kay Garver will officiate. Visitations will be Thursday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Loveland Funeral Chapel 1508 Fourth St. in La Grande. Mr. Sutton was born March 10, 1913, at Bethlehem, Iowa, to Robert and Viola (Hancock) Sutton. His father died when he was 9-years-old, … Read more

Wheeler, Lydia – Obituary

Wallowa, Oregon Lydia I. Wheeler, 77, formerly of Wallowa, died Sunday, Sept. 13, 1987 at her home in Milton-Freewater. She was born June 26, 1910 at Kirwin, Kan., daughter of Daniel and Alpha Vest Lare. The family lived in Kirwin, where she attended school until October, 1916, when the family moved to Oregon. They settled at Wallowa, where she graduated from high school. On Sept. 8, 1930, she married Joseph R. Wheeler at Enterprise. They moved to Freewater in the spring of 1931 and moved to a home on the South Fork of the Walla Walla River in the spring … Read more

Slack, Lyle B. – Obituary

Lyle B. Slack, 1915 Davis St., died at his home Wednesday. He was 64. He was born Oct. 14, 1914, at Summerville, Ore. He attended elementary schools at Summerville and Imbler, and graduated from La Grande High School. Later, he lived in Wallowa County for five years. He was in the Army during World War II. Mr. Slack married Ruth Hopkins at Cheyenne, Wyo., June 4, 1943. They farmed in the Summerville area several years before moving to Milton-Freewater in 1962, where he owned and operated Slack Upholstery Shop. Survivors are his wife; son, Donald, Hermiston; daughter, Mrs. Don (Kathy) … Read more

Shirley, Michael L. – Obituary

Union, Oregon Michel L. Shirley, 60, of Milton-Freewater and formerly of Union died Aug. 13 at St. Mary Medical Center in Walla Walla. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Mr. Shirley was born Nov. 5, 1945, to Ancle L. and Eva M. Fulp Shirley in Tranquillity, Calif. He graduated from Union High School in 1963, and served in the Air Force specializing in computer systems. In 1966 he was assigned to NORAD Headquarters in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado Springs, Colo., where he received the Armed Forces Commendation Medal. He graduated from the USAAFSS NCO Academy, and finished … Read more

Childers, Dale – Obituary

Dale Childers, 57, of Milton-Freewater, died Sunday, Nov. 13, 1988, at his home. At Childers’ request there will be no funeral service. He was born Aug. 7, 1931, in Wallowa, to Cecil and Thelma Crow Childers. He grew up in the Wallowa Valley and graduated from Joseph High School in 1949. He attended Moler Barber College at Portland, graduating in 1950. Childers owned and operated barbershops at Klamath Falls and Arlington before moving to the Milton-Freewater area in the late 1960s. He operated Dale’s Barber Shop in Milton-Freewater for 20 years. On Nov. 5, 1973, he married Jan Hobbs at … Read more

Hook, Vivian Lee Lovell – Obituary

Vivian Lee Lovell Hook of Baker City died Sept. 12 at her brother’s home in Milton-Freewater. A Rosary will be conducted at 7 p.m. tonight at Bollman Funeral Home, with a Funeral Mass at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Katherine Catholic Church in Enterprise. Burial will follow at the Enterprse Cemetery. Mrs. Hook was born Feb. 27, 1929 to Garrett Samuel and Evelyn Billerbeck Lovell. She attended Hurricane Creek School on Alder Slope, as well as schools in Enterprise and Joseph. She marred the late Carl Eugene Hook Aug. 3, 1946 in Baker. She was a homemaker and ranch wife … Read more

Hearing, Clara – Obituary

Wallowa County, Oregon Wallowa County rancher, Clara Hearing, died Jan.4, 1990, at Elzora Manor in Milton-Freewater where she had resided since Oct. 9, 1987. She was born Jan. 31, 1909, at Spokane, Wash., the daughter of John and Dorothy (Briscoe) White. The family moved to Wallowa County when she was five years old. On July 11, 1933, she married Fred Hearing in Pasco, Wash. He preceded her in death in 1962. They operated a ranch on Powwatka for 25 years. Later they bought the Butte Creek holdings (the old Bill Zurcher Place) from Mark Sevier. After her husband’s death, Mrs. … Read more

Cannon, Geneva R. – Obituary

Geneva R. Cannon, 1261 Melrose, Walla Walla, Wn., died June 6, 1979 at Walla Walla. She was born in Michigan, June 27, 1902 to Gordon and Lizzie Mae Treat. She moved to Oregon with her family as a small child. She was a graduate of Monmouth Normal School, Monmouth, OR. She married Everett L. Cannon on June 17, 1925 at Monmouth.. They made their home north of Flora until their retirement in 1959 when they moved to Milton-Freewater. After her husband’s death in 1973 she moved to Walla Walla. She was a member of the Eastgate Baptist Church and a … Read more

Colpitts, Georgie – Obituary

There will be a graveside celebration of her life at 11 a.m. Saturday at Pine Haven Cemetery in Halfway. A potluck reception is scheduled afterward at the Pine Valley Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall in Halfway. Visitations will be Friday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Tami’s Pine Valley Funeral Home in Halfway. Georgettae Pearl was born on May 26, 1938, in Enterprise to Richard and Dellourias Whitmore Brock. She was raised and educated at Enterprise, graduating from high school in 1956. That very year, in December, she married Harvey Colpitts. They had four children, Audrey, Alice, Arlene and … Read more

Moberly, Cora “Lois” Speelman Mrs. – Obituary

Cora “Lois” Moberly, 78, of Milton-Freewater and a Haines native, died Sunday, Nov. 20, 2005, in Walla-Walla, Wash. Funeral services will be held Saturday, Nov. 26, at 10 a.m. in the chapel of the Munselle-Rhodes Funeral Home, 902 S. Main St., Milton-Freewater. Private burial will be in the Milton-Freewater Cemetery. Contributions may be made to the American Heart Association, Alzheimer’s Association, or to the Diabetes Association through the funeral home. Lois was born Dec. 15, 1926, in Haines to LeRoy and Lela Cross Speelman. She received her schooling in Haines, North Powder and Baker City. She married Joseph D. Moberly … Read more

Hook, Vivian Lee Lovell Mrs. – Obituary

Vivian Lee Lovell Hook, 77, a former Baker City resident, died Sept. 12, 2006, at her brother’s home at Milton-Freewater. The rosary will be said at 7 p.m. Friday at the Bollman Funeral Home at Enterprise. Mass will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Katherine Catholic Church in Enterprise. Interment will be at the Enterprise Cemetery. Vivian was born on Feb. 27, 1929, at Enterprise to Garrett Samuel Lovell and Evelyn Billerbeck Lovell. She attended Hurricane Creek School on Alder Slope and schools at Enterprise and Joseph. She married Carl Eugene Hook on Aug. 3, 1946, at Baker City. … Read more

Heskett, Jesse C. ‘Jerry’ – Obituary

Pendleton–A graveside funeral for Jess C. “Jerry” Heskett will be held Saturday, 1 p.m. at the Enterprise Cemetery. Heskett, 76, of Pendleton, formerly of Milton-Freewater, died Wednesday, September 18, 1985, at Amber valley Nursing Home, Pendleton. He was born May 31, 1909, in the Leap area near Enterprise, the son of Willard and Grace (Feagins) Heskett. He attended schools at Trout Creek and Joseph and upon completion of his schooling Heskett farmed with his parents. He lived in Wallowa County until the mid-1960s when he moved to the Milton-Freewater area. He came to Pendleton in 1981 where he entered Amber … Read more

Molstrom, Eldon Walfred – Obituary

Eldon Walfred Molstrom Umatilla Co., OR Eldon W. Molstrom, 46, Adams resident for many years, died at his home [September 19, 1952] at Milton-Freewater Friday from cancer. Funeral services will be at 3 p.m. Monday at Folsom’s in Pendleton with the Rev. Truman Robbins, First Christian Church at Milton-Freewater, officiating. Burial will be at Olney Cemetery. Pallbearers will be Jasper Hodge, Frank Tubbs, and William Coppock, all Adams; William Allen, Milton-Freewater; Glen Bayne, Walla Walla, and Latcher Norvel, Helix. Born in Pendleton Dec. 27, 1905 Mr. Molstrom received his early education in rural schools, later graduating from Pendleton High School … Read more

Carper, Mary A. – Obituary

Wallowa, Oregon Mary A. Carper died Oct. 7, 2005, at the Regency At the Park. She was 78 years old. She was born Oct. 19, 1926 in Enterprise to Emmet and Erma Chenoweth Landers. Mrs. Carper attended school in Wallowa. On Dec. 31, 1947 she married Fredrick C. Carper. They lived in Wallowa, Elgin and then in Milton-Freewater until 1962. Mrs. Carper worked for Lynden – Umatilla Cannery, Rogers Cannery and also the Carters Tree Farms. Later in life she worked for the school district in Athena and St. Mary Medical Center. She enjoyed the outdoors, hunting and fishing. She … Read more

Hammack, Lester E. – Obituary

Lester E. Hammack 89, of Jamison, died July 13, 1989, in a Vale nursing home. Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at the First Christian Church in Vale, Rev. Paul Ratzlaff officiating. Internment will follow at Valley View Cemetery in Vale, under the direction of Lienkaemper Chapel of Vale. He was born June 12, 1900 in Lostine, Oregon, the son of John L. and Alice Bohannon Hammack. He moved with his parents and lived in Elgin, Echo and Milton-Freewater, Oregon before moving to Cow Valley in 1918. He moved to Jamison in 1920 where he ranched and farmed. He … Read more