Baker City, Oregon
Madeline Josephine Pifher, 79, of Baker City, died June 21, 2004, at Avondale, Ariz.
Her funeral will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Gray’s West & Co. Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave.Vault interment will be at Mount Hope Cemetery. The Rev. Robert C. Irwin of St. Francis de Sales Cathedral will officiate. Friends are invited to join the family for a reception at the American Legion, 2129 Second St., after the services.
Visitations will be Wednesday from noon to 8 p.m. at Gray’s West & Co.
Madeline was born on Feb. 10, 1925, at Baker City to Elbert and Alma Bernice Baisley Luster.
In February of 1941, she married Francis L. Pifher in Weiser, Idaho, just before he was leaving to join the U.S. Navy. The couple later were remarried at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral.
After Francis returned from the war, he and Madeline lived at North Powder. The family later moved to Hermiston and then back to Rock Creek.
Madeline was a member of the Ground Observer Corps, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary, and the Moose Lodge.
In her later years, Madeline kept her home in Baker City, but would travel to her children’s homes spending time with them.
Survivors include her sons, Darl Pifher, William Pifher, and Tom Pifher, all of Baker City, Wayman Pifher and his wife, Karen, of Verona, Va., Louis Pifher and his wife, Tacy, of Boise, and Richard Pifher of Pendleton; and daughters, Marjorie Leary and her husband, Mike, and Marilyn Williams and her husband, Don, all of Phoenix, Ariz.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 51 years, Francis; a son, Elbert “Dude” Pifher; and an infant daughter, Jean Pifher.
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: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, July 2, 2004
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor