Phyllis B. Morris Smith, 74, of North Powder, died April 5, 2009, at Grande Ronde Hospital in La Grande.
Her funeral will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Loveland Funeral Home in La Grande with a graveside service afterward at the North Powder Cemetery. A dinner will be served in the multipurpose room of Powder Valley Elementary School at North Powder.
Phyllis was born on Jan. 17, 1935, at Cove to Elmer and Agnes Morris. She was the youngest of the family with six siblings. She attended school at La Grande and Cove, where she eventually graduated.
Soon after graduation, she met and married Merlin W. Smith of North Powder. They were married for 48 years before his death on April 6, 2003.
She began work as the deputy clerk for the North Powder School District in 1964. After 26 years with the school, a stroke in 1990 forced her to leave that position and spend her remaining years at home.
Survivors include her sons, Sherwood, and his wife, Kerri, and children, Breanne, Dylan and Kelsey; Gareld and his wife, Stephanie, and their children, Jeremy, Brandon and Morgan; sister, Della Ehrenburg; one great-granddaughter, Lireal Fifield; and numerous in-laws, nieces and nephews and friends whom she dearly loved.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to the North Powder Community Partners or a charity of one’s choice through Loveland Funeral Chapel, 1508 Fourth St., La Grande, OR 97850.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, April 09, 2009
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor