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Shawn Vestal: Individual stories threads in Inland Northwest’s rich fabric

One obituary is a portrait of an individual life. Several of them add up to a portrait of a community’s life.

As 2014 has drawn to a close, the recent passings tell stories of decorated military men and dedicated businessmen, of women who worked as riveters and schoolteachers, of municipal planners and dairy farmers.

Here are a few of them, summarized from recent obituaries:

Geraldine Amanda Brown spent 20 years with Darigold, working as a demonstrator, manager of the hostess room, and executive secretary to the general manager. She went on to work in real estate, and then in the retirement industry, developing and managing Holman Gardens through the American Baptist Association Homes. She retired – and went to work with Rockwood Retirement Communities. At 84, after a decade with Rockwood and its charitable foundation, she retired for the last time – though she continued to perform with the “Happy Feet Cloggers.” She and her husband of 40 years, Tom H. Brown, had two children. She died Dec. 15 at age 93.

Upon graduation from Shadle Park High in 1965, James Burke enlisted in the Navy and served four tours in Vietnam. A week after his discharge in 1969, he met his future wife, JoAnne, to whom he was married for 43 years. He started working as a pipefitter, became part-owner of a sprinkler company, and eventually opened Inland Empire Fire Protection with a friend. He retired in 2010 to pursue his love of cars; he was a member of The Dukes Auto Club. He died Dec. 21 at age 67.

William Douglas Kelley served 28 years in the Navy, completed three tours in Vietnam, and retired following a highly decorated career at the rank of commander. He wrote a text that is still used in training military officers, the Amphibious Warfare and Special Operations Planning Guide. Following his service, he retired to Spokane and began a second career as a professional project manager, working for local universities and companies. He retired in 2013. He died Dec. 26 at age 67.

As a child, Rose Mary Hinchliff came with her family to Post Falls from South Dakota, seeking work in the midst of the Great Depression. After high school, Mary left for California and worked as a riveter in the McDonnell Douglas aircraft factory. She married Wendell in San Diego in 1945. They returned to Idaho and raised six children; the family moved to a dairy farm in Valley, Washington, in 1957. She and Wendell had 12 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren. She died Dec. 16 at age 95.

Harold L. Damiano bought nearly 30 businesses over the course of his life, starting with the resort Eddyville Lodge on Lake Coeur d’Alene when he was 29. He bought or was a partner in Stoddard Transfer, Coeur d’Alene Garbage, and MOR Manufacturing, co-founded Northern State Bank, and founded Recycling Associates and the Coeur d’Alene Athletic Club. He supported a wide range of community, religious and arts endeavors over his life, and started a ministry at Camelback Christian Church in Phoenix. He and his wife of 55 years, Katherine Ann, met at the University of Idaho, where he had gone on an athletic scholarship. He died Dec. 18 at age 77.

Esther “Sunnie” Lancaster was born in Spokane in 1918 to parents who had emigrated from Norway. She attended Opportunity Grade School, West Valley High and the University of Washington, graduating with bachelor’s degrees in botany and biology. She met her husband, Bill, while working at Boeing in Seattle and they were married in 1943, returning to Spokane after World War II. She worked in Spokane parks and then became a teacher at several schools in town. She spent a year as a professor at Whitworth before retirement. She was a lifelong member of the Spokane Falls Doll Club. She died Dec. 20 at age 96.

Spokane native Fred Lawrence Dayharsh worked his way through Eastern Washington University while in his 30s, and then entered a career in municipal planning. He became planning director of the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Government Council in Kelso, Washington, before returning to Spokane in 1977 to take the same position with Spokane County. After three years, he went to work for the city of Spokane’s planning department, retiring in 1994. He and his wife, Mary Kay Dayharsh, were married for 25 years. He died Dec. 28, 10 days before his 86th birthday.

Donellan Thomas Lavigne said there were two kinds of men: Marines and those who wished they were Marines. He was the former. Tom grew up in Oakland, and he enlisted at age 17. He left the Marines and attended college, going on to teach Spanish in Ojai, California. In 1977, he moved to Spokane, working as a Spanish interpreter in the court system. A devoted Catholic, Tom received the last rites 10 minutes before he passed away Dec. 22 at age 84.

Shawn Vestal can be reached at (509) 459-5431 or shawnv@spokesman.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vestal13.

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