Obituaries
Donald Clifton Moscow, Idaho
Service for Donald Frederic Clifton, 80, will be today at 1:30 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Moscow. Short’s Funeral Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Clifton, who was born in Iowa, died Tuesday.
He attended Michigan Technological University, where he completed his undergraduate studies. In 1950 he attended the University of Utah and completed his Ph.D in metallurgy.
Mr. Clifton moved to Moscow in 1957, where he taught metallurgy at the College of Mines at the University of Idaho. He wrote the metallurgy section of the Britannica Yearbook for several years and retired from the university in 1982.
Survivors include his wife, Laura; two daughters, Lois Clifton of Anchorage, Alaska, and Nancy Ballard of Lake City, Calif.; and a brother, Carl Clifton of Cahone, Colo.
Memorials may be made to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.
Henry Bongers Spokane
Burial Mass for Henry J. Bongers, 87, will be at 1 p.m. today at St. John Vianney Catholic Church. Burial will follow at the Holy Cross Cemetery. Hazen and Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Bongers who was born in Brainard, Neb., died Friday.
He had lived in Spokane for the past 27 years and worked for the Fiberform Boat Company. Mr. Bongers had previously lived in Hooper, Wash., for 35 years, where he was a barber, and owned a tavern and a small store. He had also owned a farm in Brainard.
His wife Berniece, died in 1985.
Survivors include two sons, William Bongers of Spokane and Kenneth Bongers of Yakima; one sister, Rose Bongers of Orlando, Fla.; seven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Memorial contributions may be made to St. John Vianney in his honor.
Maxine Lewis Newport, Wash.
Service for Maxine D. Lewis, 59, will be at 11 a.m. today at the Sherman-Knapp Funeral Home in Newport. Her brother, Ernie Gilbert, will be officiating.
Mrs. Lewis, who was born in Atwood, Kan., died Thursday.
She graduated from King Hill (Idaho) High School.
Mrs. Lewis was a former Spokane resident and had lived in Newport for 20 years.
She married Jack Lewis in 1987 in Coeur d’Alene and was a homemaker.
Survivors include her husband; five sons, Dan Swoboda of Las Vegas, Bob Lewis of Republic, Wash., Dennis Swoboda of Lynnwood, Wash., Bogus “Bo” Swoboda of Spokane and Tim Swoboda of Bothell, Wash.; two brothers, Wayne Gilbert of Salem, Ore., and Ernie Gilbert; a sister, Shirley Kelley of Shoshone, Idaho; and 14 grandchildren.
Joseph Pratt Sandpoint
Service for Joseph O. Pratt, 76, will be held today at 11 a.m. at Coffelt’s Moon Chapel. Burial will follow at the Pinecrest Memorial Park.
Mr. Pratt, who was born in Ilaf, Colo., died Thursday.
He attended schools in Colorado, later moving to Athol, Idaho, where he graduated from high school. He lived in Kellogg and worked for Bunker Hill as a pipefitter and timberman.
Mr. Pratt moved to Alaska in 1951, where he worked on commercial heating projects.
He retired in 1979 and made his home in Sandpoint.
Survivors include his wife, Margery; two sons, Mark Pratt of Anchorage, Alaska, and Gregory Pratt of Spokane; a daughter, Laurel Wagers of Sandpoint; two sisters, Mary Neil of Cocolalla, Idaho, and Lucille Derrick of Priest River, Idaho; and four grandchildren and one great-grandchildren.
Margaret Crabb Newport, Wash.
Graveside service for Margaret Crabb, 81, was Friday at the Newport Cemetery. Memorial service will be held at a later date. Sherman-Knapp Funeral Home in Newport is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Crabb, who was born in Harrisburg, Ill., died Wednesday.
She had lived in Spokane for 20 years and had worked as a sanitation engineer for the Spokane Transit Authority.
In 1994 she moved to Newport.
Mrs. Crabb was a member of Grace Through Faith Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Estel Crabb.
Mrs. Crabb is survived by a son, Donald Crabb of Illinois.
Cody ‘Little Buddy’ Gordon Kootenai, Idaho
Service for six-month-old Cody Robert Gordon will be held Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Coffelt’s Moon Chapel. A private family burial will be at the Brinkwood Cemetary.
Cody, who was born in Spokane, died Wednesday.
Born with a serious heart defect and premature lungs, he had two open-heart surgeries.
Survivors include his parents, Eddie and Dori Gordon; grandparents, Kent and Debbie Mitton, Matt and Debbie Scribner, Lawrence and Sherry Kelley, and Phillip and Adele Gordon; great-grandparents, Richard and Patricia Brown, Mary Mitton, Carole Mitton and Velma Gordon; and three great-great-grandmothers, Theodora Hawkins, Hilda VaSchravendyk and Wilma Marshall.
Josephine Stradley Fruitland, Wash.
Funeral Mass for Josephine F. Stradley, 95, is planned for 10 a.m. Wednesday at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, located on the west end of the Spokane Indian Reservation. Burial will be at the LaFleaur Cemetery in Fruitland. Strate Funeral Home in Davenport, Wash., is in charge of arrangements.
Born in Jerome, Wash., Mrs. Stradley died Thursday.
She was a former Spokane resident and had lived in Fruitland for five years. She was a homemaker and a member of the Catholic church.
Her husband, Harley Stradley, preceded her in death.
Mrs. Stradley is survived by two grandchildren, Juanita Neibert of Portland and Gerald Stark of Spokane.
Blanche Palm Spokane
Visitation for Blanche M. Palm, 97, will be from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. today at Ball and Dodd Funeral Home-North. Graveside service will follow at 1 p.m. at the Fairmount Memorial Park.
Mrs. Palm, who died last Monday, was born in Iowa.
She moved to Spokane in 1984 from Rapid City, S.D., and was a homemaker.
Her husband of 67 years, Harold Palm, died in 1987.
Survivors include a daughter, Bonnie Rae Yahnke of Spokane; three grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Spokane Humane Society.
Conrad Welle Spokane
No service will be held for Conrad Joseph Welle, 80, at his request. Ball and Dodd Funeral Home-South is in charge of cremation.
Mr. Welle who was born in Freeport, Minn., died Thursday.
In 1937 He moved to Spokane and worked as an automotive service manager for Kauffman Buick, now known as Becker Buick. He later worked for Barton Oldsmobile.
Mr. Welle served in the Marine Corps during World War II in the South Pacific.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Fern Welle; a daughter, Carol “Lynn” Jilbert of Auburn, Wash.; two grandsons and one great-grandson.
Lu Kennedy Spokane
No service is scheduled for Lu Lorraine Kennedy, 48. Heritage Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Kennedy, who was born in Spokane, died Wednesday.
She graduated from Lewis and Clark High School and worked in the food and beverage service industry.
Mrs. Kennedy is survived by a son, Shawn Lawrence of Coeur d’Alene; a daughter, Shannon Lawrence of Spokane; two sisters, her twin, Linda Rigsby of San Diego and Karen Smoke of Spokane; and two grandchildren.
Jesse Bell Spokane
Service for Jesse L. Bell, 61, is set for 11 a.m. today at the Ball and Dodd Funeral Home-South. Burial will be at the Pines Cemetery.
Mr. Bell, who was born in Dillard, Mo., died Thursday.
He was an automobile mechanic and was know for his handcrafted model airplanes, lamps and clocks.
Mr. Bell is survived by two sisters, Freida Bell and Saide Sterling, both of Spokane.
, DataTimes