Medical Springs, Oregon
Hazel Schetky, 95, of Baker City died Feb. 23, 2004, at her home on the Medical Springs Highway.
A memorial Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral, First and Church streets. The Rev. Rob Irwin will officiate. There will be a reception afterward at the St. Francis de Sales Parish Hall. Her urn will be buried later next to her husband at the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland.
The daughter of Henry and Emma Marlette, Hazel was born on Feb. 10, 1909, at Los Angeles. After attending UCLA, Hazel held a position as an insurance underwriter in Los Angeles and dedicated herself to raising her children, Elizabeth and Tom.
She retired in the early 1960s and fulfilled a lifelong dream by traveling to Africa. On the freighter to Africa she met Lionel Schetky and they spent several enjoyable days chatting. When they arrived in South Africa a clearly smitten Lionel informed her that he “would see her again,” but Hazel told friends and family that Lionel, while quite dashing, was a bit “too wild.”
Hazel and Lionel were married in Johannesburg, South Africa, in April of 1963. She joined Lionel in Baker City and found ranch life much to her liking; they complemented each other and were married for the next 23 years. They spent many winters indulging their shared love of travel, voyaging to Africa, South America, Australia and New Zealand and Europe.
After Lionel died in 1987, Hazel continued to live on the ranch and did a bit of traveling, but her life was increasingly constricted by advancing Alzheimer’s disease. Unlike many so afflicted with this disease Hazel was able to keep her calm and sunny disposition and remain at home where she was lovingly cared for by Mary and Stephen Phillips.
Survivors include her children, Elizabeth Flynn of Costa Mesa, Calif., and Tom Brooks of Lake Tahoe, Calif.; one stepdaughter, Dr. Helen Schetky Benschiedt of Tigard; seven grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; seven stepgrandchildren; and 15 stepgreat- grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; a sister, Mary Blanke; a stepdaughter, Barbara Schetky Mills; and two stepgrandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Alzheimer’s Association through Gray’s West & Co. Pioneer Chapel, P.O. Box 726, Baker City, OR 97814.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, March 5, 2004
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor