Fenton Roskelley, retired Chronicle outdoor writer, dies at 96
UPDATED with details about memorial service.
OUTDOOR WRITING -- Fenton S. Roskelley, who covered the outdoors for the Spokane Chronicle and The Spokesman-Review for 63 years, died today (Jan. 30) at the age of 96 with his family at his bedside, said his son, John Roskelley in Spokane.
Fenton was a 1938 University of Idaho graduate in journalism, a World War II veteran, and a fly fisher to the core. He was the editor for the Inland Empire Fly Fishing Club's book, Flies of the Northwest.
Said John:
He earned a place on that list Tom Brokaw called the Greatest Generation by taking care of his family, never missing a day of work, and by serving in Europe when his country asked him to do so. Fenton was 96, but still writing, taking photos of birds, and using facebook.
Fenton was preceeded in death by his wife, Violet, whom he married in 1945. The couple was featured in a "Love Story" column in 2007 after 62 years of marriage.
See the S-R story on Fenton after he'd written his last column for the paper 10 years ago.
A memorial service for Fenton Roskelley is set for 11 a.m. Thursday (Feb. 7) at Ball & Dodd Funeral Home, 5100 W. Wellesley Ave.
Burial will follow in the Eastern Washington Veterans Cemetery, just a few long casts from West Medical Lake, a trout fishery Roskelley covered every year for decades.
