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Langford, Marian Whaley Saturday, 07 Jan 2006
Marian Whaley (“Sis”) Langford died peacefully Jan. 7, 2006 in Friday Harbor at the age of 97. Sis is remembered by her family and friends as a loving mother, a dynamo of energy, and a woman of wit, charm, and intellect.
Sis Langford was born April 7, 1908, in Fort Sam Houston, Tex., the second of three children of Col. Arthur Maunder Whaley and Marian Elizabeth Samson. As the daughter of an Army doctor, she lived in many states, from Alaska to Washington, D.C.
After graduating from Vassar College in 1929 with a major in English and a minor in Spanish, she worked for the American Consulate General in Panama. She returned to New York and worked for the Spellman Fund from 1932 to 1937.
In 1935 Sis met and married
a young lawyer, Malcolm S. (“Mac”) Langford. Their son Malcolm Jr. was born in 1937; son Stephen in 1940. With the outbreak of WWII the family moved to Washington, D.C., where Mac Sr. worked on the Lend Lease program. When her husband joined the Navy, Sis found herself moving again, from Rhode Island to Oklahoma to Ann Arbor, Mich., where she lived with “the boys” until her husband returned from the Pacific.
After the war the family moved back to Washington, D.C., where in 1947 son Lane was born. Sis was a leading member of organizations that included the Washington Home Rule Committee and the Middle East Institute. In addition to Spanish she also became fluent in French, and for her service to the Club d’amitie Franco-Americaine, she was honored with membership in the Ordre National de la Legion d’Honneur.
After the death of her husband in 1962, Sis moved west and earned elementary and secondary teaching credentials at the University of California at Berkeley. She taught Spanish, French, and world history in schools throughout California, and at the age of 71 earned her Masters in French Literature, with honors, at the University of Montana.
Sis retired from teaching in Napa, Calif., and eventually moved to the San Juan Islands of Washington State, where sons Mac Jr. and Lane had settled. She often visited the islands, impressing the residents by immersing herself in the chilly waters off Flat Point.
She is survived by her sister Kathleen W. Schofield of Duarte, Calif.; her son Mac Jr., and his wife Tytti of Lopez Island, parents of grandson Michael; her son Steve and his wife Joann of Oro Valley, Ariz., parents of granddaughter Jenifer; and her son Lane, also of Lopez Island, father of granddaughters Breana and Brittany.
Boyd, Ruth (Ruby) Friday, 13 Oct 2006
In accordance with her wishes, Ruth (Rudy) Eliot Boyd was able to pass away in her beloved home on the hill above the Orcas ferry landing following hospitalization and care for stroke.
There, after being visited by a succession of family and friends in the following days, Mrs. Boyd died peacefully during the night of Oct. 13 at the age of 95. At her request, her remains will be cremated and her ashes spread over the wooded hillside surrounding her home with its sweeping view of Wasp Passage and the islands. She wished no funeral services and needed none to be well remembered.
Mrs. Boyd was born Aug. 1, 1911, in Weston, Mass. She grew up in Rhode Island and attended Occidental College in Los Angeles, where she studied nursing. During World War II, Mrs. Boyd volunteered with the local Red Cross.
After living many years in La Jolla, where she operated a leather craft business and raised three children, she and her second husband, William (Bill) Boyd moved to Orcas Island in 1963.
The Boyds purchased a home on the hill above the Orcas ferry landing with an expansive view of the Sound and the islands. They established an electrical contracting business and wired many of the homes built on Orcas after 1963.
Mrs. Boyd volunteered for many years at the Orcas Library. She and her husband, Bill, used their boat, the Alice E, as a race committee boat for the Orcas Yacht Club for many years.
She was an avid reader, with her own extensive library. She kept a log of books she had read and a huge dictionary at hand to look up the increasingly few words she didn’t know. She loved to garden and kept her grounds bird-friendly with feeders.
Always adventurous, Mrs. Boyd enjoyed swimming in the ocean and flying in small airplanes and was always interested in learning new things.
She faced each day with enthusiasm, taking up weaving in her 80s and was still using her loom at the age of 95.
Mrs. Boyd was preceded in death by her son, Larry Clever, and her husband, Bill.
Mrs. Boyd is survived by her sister, Mary Winsor, of Rhode Island; two daughters, Mary Annette Ybarra, of Silver City, N.M., and Nancy Eliot Drake, of Anacortes; five grandsons, Pepper Ybarra, Seth Ybarra, Paul Balli, Mark Clever and Nicholas Drake; four great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.
Anyone wishing to do something in Mrs. Boyd’s name is asked to donate to the Orcas Library, 500 Rose St., Eastsound, WA 98245.
Kring, Frances Jean Gallagher Saturday, 14 Oct 2006
Frances Jean Gallanger Kring, 89, of Lopez Island, Washington, died Saturday, Oct. 14, 2006 at Lopez Island Medical Clinic. She was born on June 29, 1917 on Lopez Island, the daughter of George and Sarah (Williams) Gallanger, Sr. Frances was raised and received her schooling on Lopez Island. She married
Gerhart Fremont Kring on Dec. 6, 1936, sharing 69 years together. Frances enjoyed gardening, cultivating three of them. When you went to visit, you never left empty handed, as she always shared her fruits and vegetables with everyone. Family was important to her and she loved family gatherings where she was able to feed them. Frances also loved caring for her flowers, picking apples from her trees, and keeping the wild birds fed. he enjoyed walking the beach and clam digging. Her needle work was beautiful. Frances was a member of the Eastern Star, the Lopez Grange, where she held various officer positions, the Lopez Island Community Church, the Garden Club, and the Birthday Club. She was considered a Lopez historian. Frances was preceded in death by her two sisters, a brother, her parents, and grandson, Victor Randolf Kring who died on Oct. 14, 2005. She is survived by her loving husband, Gerhart Kring; sons and daughters-in-law, Virg and Cindy Kring of Shepard, MT, Victor and Harriette Kring of Milton, WA; daughter, Joyce Buffum and partner, Lynn Vance of Lopez Island; numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson. A funeral service was held at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2006 at the Lopez Community Church, with Pastor Jeff Smith officiating. Interment will be at the Lopez Union cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Lopez EMT’s, Lopez Hospice, or the Lopez Medical Clinic. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Inc., Anacortes and San Juan Islands. To share memories of Frances, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
Schurr, Frank Thursday, 12 Oct 2006
Frank Schurr - Born in 1915 in Baker, Oregon. passed away Oct. 12, 2006 in Bellingham, Washinton with his wife, Bette, and his northwest children by his side. His California children were able to have a timely and enjoyable visit with him in late August. A resident of Davis Head on Lopez Island for 27 years, Frank built their beautiful waterfront home. He enjoyed his boat, crabbing, clam digging, fishing, golf, skiing, wood and stone carving and sculpture, playing bridge, reading and working on their property. A first stroke in 2004 prompted a permanent move to the mainland. Frank and his wife, Bette, have resided at the Lynden Manor in Lynden, Wa. since the move. He will be missed, this good man!
Peterson, B. Edward Saturday, 14 Oct 2006
B. Edward Peterson, artist, engineer, and bass singer with Orcas Choral Society, who with his wife Eleanor succeeded in creating “an eventful adventure, ” since they came here in 1990, died Saturday in Islands Convalescent Center after a short illness.
Best known for his three terms on the OPALCO board of directors, to which he was first elected in 1994 and which he served as president in 1995 and 1996, Ed also founded the art docent program in the public school and was one of its staunchest participants. He also served on the Orcas Center board.
Upon his retirement in 1987 as international procurement director of Broken Hill Propriety, Ltd., a multi-national construction and mining company, he was able to expand his painting talents.
He became interested in art as therapy during the illness of his first wife, the late Pearl Voight Peterson. He went on to use the expertise in lively paintings of buildings and the varied light unique to each locale all over the world. His work was accorded one-man shows at both Orcas Center and the Senior Center.
Ed served on the Vestry of Emmanuel Church in the early 1990s with the late John Burns; the two men were integral to the revitalization of the church that occurred in that decade. He became interested in the challenges of Orcas seniors when volunteering as a driver for this group.
During his four terms on the board of Orcas Senior Center, Ed played a strong role in formation of the new building, which opened in 2003.
Born in Chicago, December 22, 1922, Ed earned his BS in engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology and a MBA from San Francisco State. He served as a lieutenant with the U.S. Navy in the Pacific during World War II, after which he worked in design, construction, and supervision of buildings for Bethlehem Steel Company.
Ed met Eleanor when both were commuting on BART in the San Francisco Bay Area and she inquired how to get to the San Rafael Courthouse, thereby proving that there are more good reasons for asking directions than meet the eye.
In addition to the above organizations, he was a member of Palettes, and of the Orcas Island Yacht Club.
In addition to his wife, Ed leaves two children, Diane McDonald of Alpharetta, GA, and Richard Peterson of Ventura, CA; their spouses and one grandchild, Jennafer Peterson; and three step-children, William Bailey, Santa Clara, CA; Margaret Bailey, Spetses, Greece; and Bruce Bailey, Oakland, CA.
A memorial service will be held at Emmanuel Church; arrangements were pending at press time. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Paralyzed Veterans, 7 Mill Brook Rd., Wilton, NY, 03086.
Greiner, Gordy Thursday, 24 Aug 2006
Gordy Greiner died on August 24, 2006 after a short illness.
Born on September 7, 1934 in Harvey, illinois, he attended Northwestern University for both college and law school. His working life was spent in Denver, Colorado at the law firm of Holland & Hart. In 1998, he moved to Orcas Island and involved himself with the Garden Club, Yacht Club, and the community of Deer Harbor.
He is survived by his wife Kathy, daughter Gail, and son David.
We will remember Gordy in the Deer Harbor Community Club on Sunday, Oct. 8, between 4 and 6 p.m.
Memorials may be made to Lahari Hospice, PO Box 50, Deer Harbor, Wa. 98243
Izakson, Ruth Saturday, 26 Aug 2006
Our beloved mother and grandmother, Ruth Izakson, passed gently in her sleep in Spokane on Aug. 26.
In her 86 years, her warm heart led her to a career of caregiving as a registered nurse, nurturing of youngsters in Scouting, youth organizations and at her dinner table, which was famous for her wonderful cooking for anyone needing a family meal. After she retired, Mom organized a Visitor Corps for any patient in the massive Houston Medical Center who was there alone without any family.
She spent many years on Orcas with her grandson Joshua, daughter-in-law Carmen, and son Dubi Izakson, and made many wonderful friendships. She loved the natural beauty and wildlife which reminded her of her youth in Europe.
We were fortunate and thankful that both her sons and their families were able to spend a week with Mom before she passed. It was a blessing to have this precious time during which many memories were recounted and cherished.
Ruth Izakson was laid to rest next to her husband, Siegmund, in Spokane, where she lived in her last years and which was also the home of her son Jack and his family. Being given emergency leave from the Air Force, her grandson, 1st Lt. Joshua Izakson, was able to serve as a pallbearer, along with his father and uncle, to carry Mother to her resting place. People from Houston whose life had been touched deeply by Mom and considered her their “other mother” honored her by attending her funeral.
Mom will be greatly missed, but will live on forever in the warmth of our hearts.
Lesher, Clara Dahl Wednesday, 30 Aug 2006
Clara Dahl Lesher, age 74, a resident of both Eastsound and Seattle, passed quietly in her home on Aug. 30. She loved her family, friends, pets, gardening and traveling the world.
“According to our strength of character and our clarity of vision, we will endure, we will succeed, we will have contributed something to make life where we were and as we lived it better, brighter and more beautiful.” This quotation by Frank Lloyd Wright explains Clara’s life to perfection. She was adored by her family, friends and pets. She was envied for her adventurous nature and her beautiful spirit.
The daughter of Chris and Nina Dahl, she was born in Petersburg, Alaska. She left to attend college in New York, where she met naval officer George Lesher. The two were married
in 1952 and raised their family in the Magnolia area of Seattle.
In 1983 the family added the North beach of Eastsound as a second home. Orcas Island was revered as Clara’s favorite place in the entire world. Sharing her island home with family and friends was her greatest joy.
She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Lisa and Pat Ward, and their two children Kaitlin and Colin; her son and daughter-in-law, Chris and Sara Lesher and their son Bryce; and her youngest son, Blake Lesher.
The memorial service will be held Saturday, Sept. 9 at 11 a.m., at Light of the Cross Church, 2717 180th Street S.E., in Bothell.
Moffitt, Ernestine "Ernie" Wilma
Ernestine "Ernie" Wilma Moffitt, 87, of Lopez Island, died Monday, Aug. 14, 2006.
Ernestine Wilma Emboden was born to parents Ernest and Albertine Emboden on Nov. 12, 1919, in Grand Rapids, Mich. Ernie, as she was known to all, graduated from high school in Petoskey, Mich., in 1936. She attended Eastern Michigan Normal University and graduated in 1940 with a B.S. degree. She taught school in Muskegon, Mich., until joining the Women's Army Corps in 1943.
In the Army, she rose to the rank of captain and company commander and was responsible for over 1, 000 women. She served until 1946.
In 1946 she met Donald Moffitt and they were later married
in Detroit, Mich., on May 8, 1947. They moved to Reed City, Mich., where their three children were born.
Ernie returned to teaching school in Big Rapids, Mich., and taught high-school English and physical education, while Don worked at an auto dealership before going to college. Don received his B.S. degree from Ferris State College in 1959. In 1960 the family moved from Michigan to North Bend, Ore., where Ernie took a job as a junior high school teacher and Don took a job with what was to become Southwestern Oregon Community College. Several years later, Ernie transferred to the Coos Bay, Ore., School District where she was the high school librarian and the chairwoman of the English department.
Ernie retired from the school district in 1978. After the kids left home, Ernie and Don joined the Peace Corps, serving twice – once in Malaysia and once in Grenada — and Ernie set up public school and college libraries in these countries. Besides being a busy mom and a teacher, Ernie pursued other special interests. She loved to photograph and write and published a number of travel and historical articles in northwestern periodicals and newspapers. She and Don searched for years for their perfect retirement spot. After much consideration, they finally settled on Lopez Island, where they built their retirement home. They loved living on Lopez and treasured their friends and their daily life there.
Ernie was an active member of a number of organizations on Lopez, including the Lopez Seniors, Lutheran Church of the San Juans, Lutheran Woman Groups, Lopez Quilters, and the Birthday Club. She was preceded in death by Don, who passed away on May 10, 2006.
She is survived by her children, Cynthia of Seattle, Bert and wife Karla of Newberg, Ore., Glen of Lake Stevens, Wash., Colin and Kathy Jenkins of Friday Harbor, and her sister Norma Powell of Del Ray Beach, Florida.
A memorial service, in celebration of Ernie's life, will be held at 11 a.m. on Sept. 12 at the Center Church on Lopez. Private family inurnment will be held at Lopez Union cemetery.
In lieu of sending flowers, the family is suggesting that donations can be made to the following:
• Catherine Washburn Memorial Association, 103 Washburn Place, Lopez Island, WA 98261
• Lopez Island Hospice and Home Support, P.O. Box 747, Lopez Island, WA 98261
• Lutheran Church of the San Juans, P.O. Box 2535, Friday Harbor, WA 98250
Arrangements are under the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Inc., in Anacortes.
Share memories of Ernie and sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
Shea, Patrick Thomas
Our dear Pat died quietly at home on August 10. He was ready and at peace, he said, and knew he was encircled by the love of family and friends.
Pat spent his childhood through young adulthood in Chicago, son of the late Mike Shea and Beverly Nicholas Shea, now of Hollywood, California. At the age of five he was handed a camera by his photographer/ cinematographer father and grew up using it. Throughout his life and until the time of his death, Pat near-daily kept in hand and at the ready a still or movie camera, no friend or subject spared. A small sampling of his photos and his father’s, plus a variety of family snapshots may be viewed online at https://www.flickr.com/ photos/ thefstopshere.
In 1973 Pat’s family moved to southern California, where he worked in the movie and television industries, both with his father and independently as camera operator, electrician, best boy, clapper, set operator, and occasionally on sound. Two of the better-known projects in his career were on second unit for the movie Top Gun and behind the camera for the television series The Waltons.
The light of Pat’s life was his daughter Christine. Like her dad, Christine has an artist’s eye and now a promising career in the avant-garde of San Francisco, a direction which Pat supported heartily. Especially in recent years, father and daughter shared a lively telephone and online relationship that included the constant exchange of photos, drawings, info, tips, tricks, jokes, encouragement, and abiding love.
Several in Pat’s family have long lived in the islands or nearby, including his late grandmother Mary Shea of Eastsound, Aunt Helen Kovac of Marysville, cousins Dan and Dorothy Kovac of Lopez Island, and cousins Kitty, Ray, Tommy, and Steve. Pat had been a visitor here over many years, and when in 1996 he chose to leave the pace and intensity of the entertainment world, it was to Orcas Island he came to settle permanently. Here, too, he surrendered himself to a wholly transfigured life.
His most recent years on Orcas were the happiest of his short 54 years. He found a community of people he cared for deeply and considered his family in the highest sense. He found a dear, close circle of friends whose goodness and support he cherished and for whom this loss leaves enormous and lasting grief. He found love, sweet and pure, and shared his life in its warmth to the end. He found deep personal transformation and realization, especially in his final year and even as he braved the ravages of his illness. And, to the last day, he kept us laughing with a quick, smart, wicked sense of humor.
We who bore witness to the full bloom of the closing chapters of his life wish that you, gentle reader, might have known him as we did. The Pat Shea we love was a man of quiet substance and character: intelligent, authentic, maverick to be sure, talented, principled, generous, playful, kind, thoughtful, funny, insightful, steadfast, courageous, graceful and grateful through his last great challenge. We miss him profoundly and will for a very long time.
Please join family and friends for a memorial celebration of Pat’s life at 5pm Thursday, August 24, in the new parish hall at Emmanuel Episcopal in Eastsound. Tax deductible remembrances may be given in his name to Orcas Family Health Center or Orcas Animal Protection Society.
LUNDIN, JAMES EDWARD
Corporal James Edward Lundin was killed in action May 30, 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq. He was 20 years old. He loved his wife, his family, friends, his country and his brothers in Charlie Rock, Task Force 1-18, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, United States Army, Baghdad.
The Lundin family lived on Orcas from 1989-2000. James attended Orcas Montessori School and Orcas Elementary and Middle School.
Lundin’s immediate family, Rick, Nicole and Kristy Lundin, “wish to express our profound gratitude to the community and the U.S. Army for the extraordinary support, respect, kindness and honor bestowed upon ouir son and family during the last two weeks. James would be smiling.”
Lundin was the nephew of Jim and Val Hellar of Orcas Island, and the grandson of Mick and Claire Hellar of Waldron Island. A small memorial was held for him on Wednesday, June 6 on Orcas Island. Val Hellar said “he was an amazing young man, and very close to his cousins -- Morgan Hellar, who lived next door to him and was like his big sister – and to Serra Benson.
“He was an active, adventurous young sweetheart.”
James Lundin is also survived by his aunt and uncle, Monica and Drew Woodall, and cousins Emily and Asha Woodall of California. “The five cousins all spent glorious summers at Waldron, ” said Val Hellar.
Val and Jim Hellar said, “James’ Washington family feels the best way to honor James’ memory is to end this war and bring the troops home now.”
In Memory of James Edward Lundin, please send donations to:
Save-A-Pet Animal Rescue
608 Route 112
Port Jefferson Station, NY 11776
