Obituary

Burl Vance Gilland, 91, of Baker City, died July 17, 2009. There will be a private inurnment of his ashes and the ashes of his wife, Benita, at Redmond Memorial Garden. He was born on June 25, 1918, at a small farmhouse outside of Grant City, Mo. He was the oldest child of Clifford and Mary Margaret Miller Gilland. His mother died during childbirth when he was 4. Burl married Benita Potter on April 19, 1941, at Oregon, Mo. They were married for 67 years. In 1943, the couple moved to Sisters. Burl began working in the timber industry where … Read more

Lavinia (Ina) Moeller, 90, of Baker City, died July 17, 2009 at Regency Nursing Home in Hermiston, Ore. There will be a celebration of her life at 10 a.m., Wednesday July 22 at Gray’s West & Co., Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave. Pastor Dave DePuty of Calvary Baptist Church will officiate. Burial will be in Mount Hope Cemetery. Mrs. Moeller was born in Northern Ireland on Nov. 3, 1918 to Richard and Mary Atkinson. During World War II, while working for the British Armed Forces, she met and married Charlie Moeller in London, England in 1945. After World War II … Read more

Her memorial service will be 10 a.m. Saturday, July 18 at Gray’s West & Company Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave. A luncheon will follow at the Eagles Club, 2935 H St., beginning at 11:30 a.m. Kim was born Dec. 12, 1956, to Don McLaughlin and Joyce (McLaughlin) Aldrich, in Pensacola, Fla. Her family moved to Baker in 1972 where she met the love of her life, Samuel Carpenter Sr. The couple were married on Sept. 19, 1984, blending their families together. Kim had two children, Chrissy and Steven, and Sam Sr. had two children, Dollie and Sam Jr. Kim lived … Read more

Pauline F. (Polly) Spangler, 91, a former Baker City resident, died July 14, 2009, at a local care facility in Boise. Cremation arrangements are under the direction of Potter Funeral Chapel in Emmett, Idaho, and internment will be at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery in Boise. Polly was born April 22, 1918, in Sparta, to Clyde and Elizabeth Macy. She grew up and attended schools in Baker City. In the 1940s she worked at the Portland shipyards and after Pearl Harbor followed in her three brothers’ military footsteps by joining the Navy in 1943. Her basic training took place at … Read more

Armand Charles Macy, 29, a former Baker City resident, died from injuries sustained in a car accident on June 8, 2009. There will be a Celebration of Life potluck gathering in his memory at 2 p.m. Saturday at Ogden Horse Camp on Paulina Road. Everyone is invited to come and share memories. Armand was born on Nov. 3, 1979, at Bend to Howard and Carmen Nolet Macy. He moved with his family to Baker City at age 12, where he finished high school. He worked as a customer service representative for AnswerNet in Portland while attending Portland Community College Sylvania … Read more

Robert “Bob” Gerry, 80, died on April 15, 2009, at his home in Baker City. His memorial service will be at noon Saturday at the Durkee Cemetery. There will be a reception for family and friends at 1 p.m. at the Durkee Grange. Affectionately known as “Uncle Bobby” by so many of his relatives, Bob Gerry was born on May 18, 1928, at Baker City to Clifford R. Gerry and Mary E. Sheehan. He was the youngest of many siblings and was the ninth child born to Mary Sheehan Gerry. During his younger years he attended school in the towns … Read more

Steve Hovley, 57, of Baker City, died July 4, 2009, in Ontario. There will be a celebration of Steve’s life at 2 p.m. Friday at Gray’s West & Co. Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave. Steve’s life went in chapters, his family said. He was born on Nov. 23, 1951, at Oxnard, Calif., and raised at Simi Valley, Calif., and Pasco, Wash. He moved to Yakima, Wash., where he met and fell in love with Cherie Fanning. Steve, Cherie and his stepson, Scott, lived at Madras and Klamath Falls. Cherie died of cancer on Jan. 16, 2000. The next chapter in … Read more

Gladys V. Ritch, 91, a longtime Baker City resident died July 5, 2009, at St. Elizabeth Health Care Center. At her request, her body was cremated and there will be no service. Inurnment was at Mount Hope Cemetery. Mrs. Ritch was born on Sept. 1, 1917, at Baker City. She was one of six children of Edd and Christina Olson Colson. She was educated in Baker schools and was a Baker High School graduate. She married Allen Ritch. The couple were were married 53 years. They moved to Seattle, Wash., where Mr. Ritch attended barber college and they remained in … Read more

Dorothy Mattox Strong, 93, a Baker City native, died July 5, 2009, at St. Elizabeth Hospital. Her funeral will be at 1 p.m. Thursday at Gray’s West & Co. Pioneer Chapel, 1500 Dewey Ave. Pastor Lennie Spooner of the First Church of the Nazarene will officiate. Vault interment will be at Mount Hope Cemetery. Friends are invited to join the family for a reception at Gray’s West and Co. afterward Dorothy Wilma Mattox was born April 29, 1916, on the Curry ranch in Bowen Valley to William and Mary Mattox. A daughter of pioneers, her family was lured to Baker … Read more

Yvette “Angel” Leggett, 67, of Baker City died June 24, 2009 at Boise. Friends and family honored her during a memorial barbeque June 27 at her home. Angel was born on April 23, 1942, at San Francisco to Russell and Marie Petropoulos LeFevre. She attended Balboa High School, the same school her father attended. She married Larry Foster and the couple had one son: Russell Foster. She and Larry later divorced, but remained lifelong friends. Angel then married Ralph Eckhart and lived as a Navy wife for the next 16 years. During that time she was involved with Webelo Scouts … Read more

Mildred Donna Brackin DeShaw, 80, of Baker City, died June 29, 2009, at her home. No funeral is planned at this time. Mildred was born on Oct. 21, 1928, at Drumright, Okla., to Fred and Anna Grogan Brackin. The family moved to Baker City when Mildred was about 10. She married Eugene DeShaw in 1953. She worked at Wilson’s Market for more than 20 years. She was an avid bowler and bingo player and she loved her gambling trips. She was loved by all and will be greatly missed by her family and many friends, family members said. Survivors include … Read more

Mary A. Garrick, 70, a former resident of Western Washington County and Baker County, and most recently of Oregon City, died June 28, 2009, at her home. Her Celebration of Life Service will be at 1 p.m. Thursday at the Hillsboro Church of the Nazarene, 1390 N.E. 21st Ave., in Hillsboro. The Rev. Ernie McNaught of the Church of the Nazarene (retired) will officiate. Family and friends are invited to a reception immediately after the service at the church. Concluding rites and vault interment will be at Skyline Memorial Gardens, 4101 S.W. Skyline Blvd. in Portland. Mary Agnus Garrick was … Read more

Margaret Karg, 100, a former Baker City resident, died June 27, 2009, at the Idaho Falls Care and Rehabilitation Center, where she had been a resident for 10 years. There will be a joint memorial service for Margaret and her husband, Otto Karg, at 2 p.m. Friday at Wood Funeral Home, 273 N. Ridge Ave., Idaho Falls. There will be a visitation time afterward. Burial will be in Rose Hill Cemetery. Her maiden name was Margurite Maria McCarty. She was born on Nov. 30, 1908, at Woodland, Wash., to Riley and Addie Chandler McCarty. She was the third of four … Read more

Ellen Berdene Tidwell (Bloom), 71, of Baker City, died June 26, 2009. Berdene was born Sept. 28, 1937, in Oregon. She married Charles H. Tidwell in 1963 and raised a family in the South, returning to Baker City to retire. She most loved being a mother and grandmother, and spending time with her family and friends. She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Patti and Lloyd Shaver; her son and daughter-in-law, Mike and Audrey Tidwell; her grandchildren, Rachel and T.L., Mike, Jean, Cliff and Charlie; and her great-grandchildren, Nykole, Aaron and Chianne. Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, … Read more