Obituaries
Ervin Crain Hayden, Idaho
Memorial service for Ervin Crain, 69, will be today at 5 p.m. at Coeur d’Alene Memorial Funeral Home. Coeur d’Alene Memorial Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Crain, who was born in Grayson County, Ky., died Monday.
He was raised in Illinois and married Roberta Greenacre in 1945. They divorced in 1972.
He married Xeilah Osborne and moved to Coeur d’Alene. He moved to Hayden in 1990.
Mr. Crain enjoyed fishing.
Survivors include his wife; one son, LeRoy Crain of California; four stepsons, Richard and Thomas Butterfield, both of Spokane, Rusty Butterfield of Coeur d’Alene and Kevin Leinan of Pendleton, Ore.; five stepdaughters, Diana Thompson, Deborah Francis and Shirley Schmidt, all of Spokane, Ruth Glaspie of Rathdrum, Idaho, and Suzanne Davis of Post Falls; six brothers, Willard, Howard, Laymon, Albert, Damon and Clayton; three sisters, Hettie, Vernie and Rena; one granddaughter; and numerous step grandchildren and step great-grandchildren.
Ralph MacDonald Chewelah, Wash.
Vigil service for Ralph L. MacDonald, 81, will be at 7 p.m. today at Schanzenbach Funeral Home. Service is planned for 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Chewelah. Burial will be at Chewelah Memorial Park.
Mr. MacDonald died Saturday.
He was born in Gifford, Wash.
He retired from King County as a welder and moved to Chewelah in 1978.
He had served in the Army and was a member of American Legion Post No. 54, and St. Mary’s Catholic Church.
Survivors include four sons, Robert MacDonald of Federal Way, Wash., Timothy MacDonald of Auburn, Wash., Gary MacDonald of Spokane and Tom MacDonald of Kent, Wash.; one daughter, Jerrene Loss of Greenacres; two brothers, Milt and Fred MacDonald, both of Chewelah; one sister, Marguerite Brown of Snohomish, Wash.; 11 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society.
L.D. ‘Van’ VanTress Chattaroy
Visitation for L.D. “Van” VanTress, 89, is scheduled from noon to 9 p.m. today at Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home. Service will be at 1 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home with burial to follow at Holy Cross Cemetery.
Mr. VanTress, who died Saturday, was born in Walla Walla.
He entered the Navy in 1922 and served on the battleship USS Tennessee.
He worked for Kraft Foods Co., in Bremerton, Seattle and in Spokane as district manager. He retired in Portland as district manager after 44 years.
He and his wife, Cecelia, moved to Chattaroy 25 years ago. She preceded him in death.
He is survived by one daughter, Diane Huff of Chattaroy; one son, Frederick VanTress of Elk; and three grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, P.O. Box 1818, Memphis, Tenn., 38101, or The Heart Institute of Spokane, in care of Dr. Henry Reisig, 122 W. Seventh Ave., Spokane, WA 99204.
Georgine Marshall Spokane
Memorial service for Georgine K. Marshall, 69, will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Sunset Mausoleum at Fairmount Memorial Park. Riplinger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Marshall, who was born in North Dakota, died Sunday.
She had lived in Spokane for more than 36 years and was a homemaker.
She was a member of Sinto Senior Center, Ladies Oriental Shrine and the Order of Eastern Star.
She is survived by her husband, Fred Marshall; two daughters, Kathleen Higgins of Spokane and Linda Potter of Colorado Springs, Colo.; two sons, William and Timothy McVaugh, both of Spokane; two sisters, Jackie Gollinger of Duluth, Minn., and Bobbie Kern of Dodge Center, Minn.; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.
Ernest Geier Colfax, Wash.
Service for Ernest Conrad “Ernie” Geier, 77, will be at 1 p.m. today at Peace Lutheran Church. Burial will be at Colfax Cemetery. Bruning Funeral Home in Colfax is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Geier, who died Saturday, was born in Endicott, Wash.
He was drafted into the Army in 1942 and was discharged in 1946.
He moved to Colfax and went to work for Brown and Holter Chevrolet as a mechanic and left in 1978 as the service manager. He then worked for Bill Durham’s service station until it was sold. For the past several years he worked as a lifeline installer and courier at Whitman Hospital.
He was a member of Peace Lutheran Church, the Colfax Elks Lodge, the Codd-French Post American Legion and the Colfax Golf Club.
He is survived by his wife, Charlene; one daughter, Debora Knodel of Lind, Wash.; two sons, Jeffrey Geier of Colfax and Christopher Geier of Chicago; four sisters, Dorie Looney of Odessa, Wash., Mary Poffenroth of Spokane, and Clara Morasch and Carolyn Smith, both of Seattle; three brothers, Carl Poffenroth of Lewiston, Harold Poffenroth of Spokane and Elmer Poffenroth of Palo Alto, Calif.; and five grandsons.
Memorial contributions may be made to be Whitman Hospital Foundation or Peace Lutheran Church.
James ‘Wally’ Bradbury Spokane
Service for James “Wally” Bradbury, 73, will be at 1 p.m. today at Sunset Mausoleum Chapel at Fairmount Memorial Park.
Mr. Bradbury, who was born in Spokane, died Sunday.
He worked as a parts manager for a heavy equipment business.
He was a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 51 and Post Falls Eagles.
Mr. Bradbury is survived by his wife, Minnie Bradbury; one daughter, Linda Selchert of Wisconsin; one son, James Bradbury of Seattle; two stepsons, Mike Achziger and Johnny Achziger; one stepdaughter, Trudy Scott; one sister, Jane Moss of Seattle; three grandchildren, several stepgrandchildren, one great-granddaughter and several stepgreat-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Spokane.
Dorothy Gow Spokane
Service for Dorothy Lee Gow, 82, is planned for 11 a.m. today at Sunset Mausoleum Chapel at Fairmount Memorial Park. Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Gow, a lifetime Spokane resident, died Saturday.
She was a homemaker and was a 50-year member of Emmanuel Presbyterian Church.
Her husband, Thomas Gow Jr., died in 1988.
Mrs. Gow is survived by one son, Bill Gow of Spokane; one daughter, Linda Ott of Springfield, Ill.; two grandchildren and one great-grandson.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society.
George Thiele Spokane
Graveside service for George R. Thiele, 76, is set for 1:30 p.m. Friday at Fairmount Memorial Park. Hazen and Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Thiele, a longtime Spokane resident, died Saturday.
He was born in the Four Lakes area and graduated from Medical Lake High School.
He flew in the Army Air Corps during World War II. After the war, he flew air ambulance, charter flights and fire patrol for the Forest Service. He was also a flight instructor at Felts Field.
He worked for Washington Water Power Co. for 44 years and retired in 1981. He was a line foreman for many years and was a member of the WWP Trailblazers.
Mr. Thiele was a member of the Elks Club, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Hump Pilots Association and the Quiet Birdmen.
His wife, Lucile, died in 1992.
He is survived by two daughters, Amy Thiele of Seattle and Lori Stewart of Spokane; his companion, Marilyn Luckett of Spokane; one brother, Richard Thiele, and one sister, Mabel Miller, both of Seattle.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Union Gospel Mission.
Theodore Fischbach Spokane
Service for Theodore F. “Ted” Fischbach, 80, is set for 3 p.m. today at Riplinger Funeral Home. Cremation will follow.
Born in Coeur d’Alene, Mr. Fischbach died Sunday.
He was a longtime Spokane resident and worked for Washington Water Power. He retired in 1977.
He was a member of the WWP Trailblazers, the Musicians Union of Spokane and the Eagles Lodge No. 2.
Mr. Fischbach is survived by his wife of 60 years, Mae Fischbach; one son, Robert Fischbach of Sacramento, Calif.; two daughters, Judy Thatcher of Puyallup, Wash., and Glenda Garcia of Spokane; four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Spokane Humane Society or the American Lung Association.
Arlita Donovan Spokane
Memorial service for Arlita L. (Herman) Donovan, 46, will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at Tri-community Grange Hall, Moab Junction, Newman Lake. Private inurnment will be at Spokane Memorial Gardens. Hazen & Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Donovan died Sunday.
She was a lifetime Spokane resident and graduated from East Valley High School.
She worked as a nurse in private homes and convalescent hospitals for 20 years.
She is survived by her companion, Samuel Hill; two sons, Steven Herman of Spokane and Adam Donovan at home; two daughters, Amanda Donovan and Melody Burnett, both at home; her mother, Lee Herman Bain of Spokane; two sisters, Linda Misterek of Spokane and Vikki Bang of Conroe, Texas; one brother, Jaymes Herman of Spokane; and three grandchildren.
Gordon Langford Spokane
No service will be held for B. Gordon Langford, 87, at his request. Hazen and Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Langford, who died Monday, was born in Hagerman, N.M.
Mr. Langford moved to Spokane from Vancouver, Wash., in 1981. He worked as a design engineer.
He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Langford; two sons, Richard Langford of New Mexico and William Langford of Moscow, Idaho; two brothers; and three grandchildren.
Glen Jones Spokane
Graveside service for Glen V. Jones, 93, will be at 1:30 p.m. today at Greenwood Memorial Terrace. Hazen and Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Born in Anaconda, Mont., Mr. Jones died Monday.
He was an electrician and had lived in Spokane since 1948.
He retired in 1967.
He was a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Shriners.
He is survived by two brothers-in-law, Rich Hobbs of Veradale and Robert Hobbs of Chicago.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Shriner’s Hospital for Crippled Children.
Effie Swanson Spokane
Graveside memorial service for Effie E. Swanson, 97, will be at a later date. Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Swanson, who died Friday, was born in Minneapolis.
She was a homemaker and had lived in Spokane for 85 years. Her husband, of 52 years, Sven “Art” Swanson, died in 1975.
She is survived by two sons, John Swanson of Kirkland, Wash., and Robert Swanson of Spokane; five grandchildren and several great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Spokane County Animal Control.
, DataTimes