Richard (Dick) W. Marr, 79, of Baker City, passed away peacefully Jan. 10, 2005, at St. Elizabeth Heath Services.
Dick was born in Wendling, Ore., on Jan. 23, 1925. He grew up in the Willamette Valley, graduating from Falls City High School.
The Marr family will host a memorial celebration of life in June; all friends and family are welcome. An announcement will follow in The Record-Courier.
Dick is survived by his devoted and loving wife, Judy Young-Marr of Baker City; son and wife, Richard and Karen Marr of Port Orford; twin daughter, Candis Marr-Wade of Coquille; grandson and family, Craig, Nicole and Kylie Wade of Maryland; granddaughter and family, Kimberly, Tony, MacKenzie, Madison, Morgan and Tony Jr. Budesilich of Eugene; twin daughter, Carol Marr-Phillips of Monmouth; granddaughter and husband, Andrea and Matt Ellingson of Boone, N.C.; granddaughter, Amanda Phillips of Boone, N.C.; grandson and family, Jake, Becky, Luke and Cody Phillips of Friday Harbor, Wash.; son and family, Mark, Susan, Erik and Sarah Young of Denver, Colo.; son and family, Grant, Carol and Brandon Young of North Powder; daughter and family, Bonnie, Joe, Sydney and Alexa Daniels of Anchorage, Alaska.
Dick enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp at age 17, and served in World War II in the South Pacific as a Marine Raider. He was awarded the Purple Heart for being wounded in action.
After serving in the Marine Corp, Dick had a hunger for adventure. In the 1940s, he became a private pilot owning several planes. In the early 1950s, he built and owned one of the first Planer Mills in Whitehorn, Calif. From logging and the sawmill to ranching in Mayfield, Idaho, he relocated to North Powder to continue ranching. He then decided to take up commercial fishing off the Oregon Coast and later upscaled to a larger vessel to fish the Alaska waters off Kodiak, the Aleutian Chain and the Bering Sea for salmon, king crab and shrimp. In the 1980s he returned to the lower 48 settling in the Baker Valley with his wife, Judy.
Dick had a full life, always giving of himself without hesitation, expecting nothing in return. In the Marine Corp, after being wounded himself, Dick continued to aid other comrades who were given up for dead; he flew sick and injured neighbors and friends to hospitals as needed, and also flew in to rescue stranded California flood victims in the 1950s. In the 1960s, he also responded to S.O.S. calls aiding the Coast Guard in locating ships in distress. Dick always had time to help family, friends and neighbors; he never knew a stranger and lived by the creed, “seize the day!”
Dick’s spirit continues to stay alive:
“Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars,” by Henry Van Dyke.
Memorial contributions may be made to Crossroads Arts Center, 1901 Main Street, Baker City, OR 97814.
Used with permission from: The Record Courier, Baker City, Oregon, January, 2005
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor