Obituaries
Margaret Smith Princeton, Idaho
Service for Margaret E. Smith, 98, is planned for 11 a.m. Thursday at Kramer Funeral Home in Palouse, Wash. Private burial will follow.
Mrs. Smith, who was born in Walla Walla, died Sunday.
She and her husband, William Smith, settled near Kamiah, Idaho, and raised cattle. In 1945 they moved to Princeton, where they farmed and raised cattle. Her husband died in 1950, and she continued to operate the farm until 1973.
She was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Potlatch and was a charter member of Cayuse Kids Saddle Club. She was a member of the Harvard (Idaho) Ladies Aid, the 4-H Club and the Harvard Park Group.
Survivors include one son, Francis Smith of Princeton; one sister, Ludween Ladoeucer of Billings, Mont.; five grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Potlatch Ambulance Fund or Harvard Ladies Aid.
Maurice Barker Bonners Ferry, Idaho
Service for Maurice Roland Barker, 84, is planned for 11 a.m. today at Bonners Ferry Funeral Home.
Mr. Barker, who was born in Indianola, Iowa, died Saturday.
He served as a pilot in the Army during World War II. Following his discharge, he returned to Iowa. He and his wife, Laura, later moved to California.
In 1977 they moved to Bonners Ferry to retire.
He was an avid hunter and fisherman and was active in riding clubs.
He is survived by his wife; one son, Mark Barker of Bonners Ferry; and two grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Fry Foundation, ECF Wing at Bonners Ferry Community Hospital.
Peggy Wexler Pullman
Memorial service for Peggy Ann Wexler, 56, will be at 11 a.m. today at Trinity Lutheran Church in Pullman, where she was a member. Kimball Funeral Home in Pullman is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Wexler, who was born in Lewiston, died Sunday.
She graduated from Pullman High School and Kinman Business College. She was a secretary for Trinity Lutheran Church and Community Congregational Church and later worked for Washington State University as a secretary.
She was selected as Palouse Empire Mother of the Year in 1994.
Survivors include her husband of 36 years, Fred Wexler; five daughters, Tracy Townsend of Moscow, Idaho, Tammy Meyer of Pullman, Terry Wexler of Poulsbo, Wash., Tiffany Gustin of Troy, Idaho, and Tenley Wexler of Seattle; one son, Fred Wexler III of Pullman; one sister, Rosemary Kochman of Roosevelt, Wash.; three brothers, Richard Blum of Springfield, Va., Gerald Blum of Glendora, Calif., and Frank Blum of Twin Lakes, Idaho; and 13 grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to North Idaho Children’s Home or Community Hospice Home Health and Hospice.
John McCarthy Spokane
Memorial Mass for John McCarthy, 76, is set for 10 a.m. Thursday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. There will be private inurnment. Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. McCarthy died Sunday. He was born in Spokane and graduated from Lewis and Clark High School and Gonzaga University.
He worked for Old National Bank for 31 years and was appointed Washington state banking supervisor by Gov. Dan Evans. He retired from Washington Trust Bank as vice president after 10 years.
He was a member of the Downtown Spokane Kiwanis, The Spokane Club, Gonzaga Great Teacher Program and Sacred Heart Parish.
He served in World War II.
Mr. McCarthy is survived by his wife of 49 years, Jean McCarthy; two daughters, Sally Epler of Seattle and Marguerite “Maggie” Braeuer of Alexandria, Va.; two brothers, Joseph and Earl McCarthy, both of Seattle; one sister, Marguerite Roberts of Spokane; and four grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Morning Star Boys Ranch or the House of Charity.
William Gillis Colville, Wash.
Graveside service for William F. Gillis, 98, will be at 10 a.m. today at the Riverside Cemetery in Ione, Wash. Danekas Funeral Chapel in Colville is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Gillis, a 60-year Ione resident, died Saturday in Colville, where he had lived for three years. He was born in Holland, Maine.
He had worked in the mines and mills in Ione and Metaline, Wash., and on the construction of Box Canyon Dam.
His wife, Vera Gillis, died in 1976. He is survived by one son, Jerry Gillis of Harrisburg, Pa.; three sisters, Mertle Ceffalo and Margaret Phillips, both of Seattle, and Josephine Osborn of Coeur d’Alene; and two grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society.
Vernon Ruen Clark Fork, Idaho
Service for Vernon “Vern” Ruen, 76, will be at 1 p.m. today at Coffelt Funeral Home in Sandpoint. Burial will follow at Pinecrest Memorial Park, Sandpoint.
Mr. Ruen, a lifetime Clark Fork resident, died Saturday.
He graduated from Clark Fork High School as valedictorian in 1936.
He worked on the Ruen Family farms and ranches, raising foundation seed potatoes. One family farm has the longest existing strain of Russett potatoes in Idaho. On the farms he also milked cows and raised pheasants and banty chickens.
He was active in the Ruen Lumber Co. and operated sawmills in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, and Clark Fork.
Mr. Ruen had served on the Bonner County School Board and was a member of the Idaho Cattlemen’s Association, the Idaho Crop Improvement Board, the Idaho Potato Commission and the Sandpoint Eagles Lodge. He served as chairman of the board at Clark Fork United Methodist Church.
Survivors include his wife of 17 years, Elaine Ruen; one daughter, Colene Dawson of Post Falls; two sons, Warren Ruen of Clark Fork and Lowell Ruen of Spokane; two stepdaughters, Judith Garner of Hayden Lake, Idaho, and Janet Keough of Athena, Ore.; one stepson, Neil Va de Mark of Rathdrum, Idaho; one sister, Noreen Rouse of Longview, Wash.; five grandchildren, nine stepgrandchildren, two great-grandchildren and three stepgreat-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Clark Fork School for the restoration of the bell tower and the old school.
Max Harder Sprague, Wash.
Service for Max S. Harder, 81, is planned for 2 p.m. Thursday at Danekas Funeral Home in Ritzville, Wash. Burial will be at Macabee Cemetery, Sprague.
Mr. Harder died Saturday at Life Care Center in Ritzville.
He was born in Ritzville and graduated from Ritzville High School.
He had lived and ranched in Sprague for the past 56 years.
He was a member of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association and the Washington State Farm Bureau and was a charter member of The Spokane Club.
Survivors include his wife of 54 years, Alana; one son Rex Harder; and one daughter, Virginia McKay, both of Sprague; one sister Anne Wyatt of Spokane; and seven grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sprague Fire Department.
Cecil Morford Tekoa, Wash.
Service for Cecil L. Morford, 90, will be at 10 a.m. today at United Church of Tekoa. Graveside service will follow at Goldenrod Cemetery. Kramer Funeral Home in Tekoa is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Morford, who died Sunday, was born in Mullinville, Kan. He moved to Tekoa in 1929. He owned a commercial trucking business and was a cement worker before he retired in 1963.
He served in the Army during World War II and received a Purple Heart. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Mr. Morford’s wife, Ruth Morford, died in 1987. He is survived by one daughter, Jennie Kane of Fairfield; three sisters, Vera Whitely of Riverside, Calif., Lois Parr of Corvallis, Ore., and Ellen Knight of El Centro, Calif.; and three grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Tekoa Care Center.
Samuel Sprute Spokane
Vigil service for Samuel David Sprute, 34, is planned for 7 p.m. today at Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home. Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Aloysius Catholic Church. Inurnment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery.
Mr. Sprute, who was born in Spokane, died Saturday after an extended illness.
He graduated from Richland High School and was a member of St. Aloysius Parish.
He is survived by his parents, Virgil and Bernice Sprute of Richland; one brother, Phil Sprute of Issaquah, Wash.; and three sisters, Anne Bradley of Paradise, Calif., and Joan Arrasmith and Kate Sprute, both of Richland.
Memorial contributions may be made to Catholic Charities.
Lilly Nelson Spokane
Memorial service for Lilly (Helleloid) Nelson, 85, will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home. Inurnment will be at the Mausoleum at Riverside Memorial Park.
Mrs. Nelson, who was born in Halston, Minn., died Sunday. She moved to Spokane in 1944 and worked for The Crescent for eight years.
Her husband, Elmer Nelson, preceded her in death. She is survived by two daughters, Ruby Greco of Bellevue, Wash., and Phyllis Ransom of Sacramento, Calif.; two brothers, Herman Helleloid of Sunland, Calif., and Stanley Helleloid of International Falls, Minn.; one sister, Ruby Ralston of Spokane; four grandchildren and one great-grandson.
Edna Caddis Spokane
Memorial service for Edna Marie Caddis, 64, is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday at the Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute commons room. Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Caddis died Saturday. She was born in Richmond, Ind., graduated from the University of Cincinnati and was a clinical dietitian from 1955-80.
She became a registered dietitian in 1969 and received her master’s degree in 1980 from Eastern Washington University.
From 1980 to 1993 she worked at the Spokane County Health District as director of senior nutrition services. She retired in 1993.
She is survived by her husband of 39 years, James Caddis; three daughters, Karen Caddis-Burrell of Bellevue, Colo., Jeannie Plopper of Spokane and Connie Brunner of Windsor, Colo.; one sister, Georgia McMillan of Cincinnati; and two grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, Hospice of Spokane or the Spokane Riverfront Park Carrousel Fund.
Ruth Charrier Spokane
Service for Ruth Charrier, 88, will be at 2 p.m. today at Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home. Burial will be in Stayton, Ore.
Mrs. Charrier, who died Sunday, was born in Ritzville, Wash. She graduated from Ritzville High School and had worked for a telephone company.
Four years ago she moved to Spokane from Oregon, where she had lived for 20 years.
Her husband, Fred Charrier, died in 1991. She is survived by three sisters, Lucile Werttemberger of Spokane, Violet Kembel of Ritzville, and June Reems of Wenatchee; and one brother, Virgil Schafer of Spokane
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Spokane.
Louis Johnson Sacheen Lake, Wash.
Service for Louis H. Johnson, 70, is set for 11 a.m. Wednesday at Riplinger Funeral Home.
Mr. Johnson, a former Spokane resident, died Saturday.
He was born in Drake, N.D., graduated from Mead High School and retired from Kaiser Aluminum as a welder in 1989.
He was a member of the North Hill Masonic Lodge, the Order of the Eastern Star, Sadir Khan Grotto, the Sacheen Lake Fire Department, the Sacheen Lake Betterment Association, the Friends of the Davenport and the Telephone Pioneers Partners.
He is survived by his wife, Julie Johnson; one son, Gary Johnson of Spokane; one stepdaughter, Darlene Larson of Greenbluff; four stepsons, George Lake and David, Daniel and Donald Grebe, all of Spokane; two brothers, Neil Johnson of Spokane and Dwight Johnson; nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Joe Sety Chewelah, Wash.
Service for Joe Sety, 100, will be at 9:45 a.m. today at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Chewelah, with burial at Chewelah Catholic Cemetery. Schanzenbach Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Sety, who was born in Syria, died Sunday. He operated Sety’s Hardware store in Chewelah until the mid-1940s and later worked in the secondhand trade until the 1970s.
He is survived by two sons, Frank and Joseph Sety, both of Chewelah; one daughter, Louise Koestner of Spokane; one brother, Nave Sety of Chewelah; 12 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Margaret Olsen Spokane
Service for Margaret Josephine Olsen, 79, will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Riplinger Funeral Home. Burial will be at Fairmount Memorial Park.
Mrs. Olsen, a 55-year Spokane resident, died Saturday. She was born in Starkweather, N.D.
She had worked at Blodgett’s Grocery Store in the 1950s and at Montgomery Ward in the 1960s.
She is survived by one son, Rodney Olsen of Malvern, Pa.; one daughter, Patricia Resseman of Colbert; one brother, Earl Conaway of Palmdale, Calif.; nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.
Susan Newton Newport, Wash.
Service for Susan M. (Bray) Newton, 91, is set for 11 a.m. today at Sherman-Knapp Funeral Home in Newport. Burial will follow at Newport Cemetery.
Mrs. Newton, who was born in Vernon, Fla., died Sunday.
She moved to the Newport area in 1954 and had worked at Sacred Heart Hospital in housekeeping.
She is survived by one son, Emory “Eddy” Bray of Spokane; two daughters, Dorothy Rhames of Newport and Mattie Alarcon of Hayward, Calif.; one sister, Nettie Williams of Florida; 17 grandchildren and several great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.