Bertina M. “Bea” Shook, 77, a former Baker County resident, died March 30, 2001, at the Richland Life Care Center at Richland, Wash.
Her funeral was April 6 at the Richland Lutheran Church.
Mrs. Shook was born Dec. 22, 1923, at Medical Springs. She was considered an early Christmas present. Her family later moved to Pondosa. She married Manly Shook in 1943 and the couple moved to Baker City.
In 1946, they moved their family to Richland, Wash., where they raised their three children.
They later moved to Benton City, Wash., and bought a horse ranch. Eventually, after the kids were raised, they moved to Whitstran, Wash., on another horse ranch. Aside from working on the ranch and raising children, Mrs. Shook worked as a custodian for Battelle from 1968 to 1989.
She was very involved in community activities. While at Richland, she and her husband helped to found the Richland Lutheran Church. She was very involved in the Sunday school classes at the church.
She also served as a room mother at the local school so that she could take an active role in her children’s lives.
The Shooks helped to start the first rodeos in the Tri-City area. Mrs. Shook also trained a racehorse they owned.
Later on, she became very involved with cutting horses. She was a lifetime member in the Washington Cutting Horse Association and was a show manager for many years. She also had many friends in the Northwest Cutting Horse Association.
Outside of the horse community, she enjoyed traveling, gambling, square dancing, horse racing and honky-tonkin’. Most of all, she loved to be with her family and friends. She was a spark in every life she touched, full of life and encouragement.
Survivors include her brothers, Ralph Coffman and his wife, Verna, Coy Riggs and his wife, Gerry, and Fred Riggs; her sister, Hazel Allegre, and her husband, Bob; her children, Nancy Walsh and her husband, John, Jerry Shook and his wife, Elizabeth, and Donna Whittle and her husband, Jim; and grandchildren, Sean Ahern, Shane Ahern, Lance Shoemaker and his wife, Stephanie, Kevin Shoemaker, April Shook, Casey Shook and his wife, Meredith, and their two children, Christian and Adam.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Shriners Hospital for Children, P.O. Box 2472, Spokane, Wash. 99210-2472.
Used with permission from: The Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, April 20, 2001
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor