Obituaries
Brent Nelson Spokane
Service for Brent E. Nelson, 23, will be at 2 p.m. today at Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home.
Mr. Nelson died Aug. 19 in an auto accident near Hutchinson, Minn..
He was born in Spokane and graduated from West Valley High School.
Before he graduated from high school, he began working at Six Star, at the Safeway store on Argonne Road, and in construction with Harlan Douglass.
After graduation he worked for Lanzce Douglass Construction, Toys R Us, Granny’s Buffet at Northpointe and Old Country Buffet.
He is survived by his parents, Harlan and Phyllis Nelson of Spokane; two sisters, Bennett Stone of Abilene, Texas, and Wendy Nelson of Spokane; and his grandparents, Maurice and Ruth Brekke of Cecil, Wis., and Howard and Doris Nelson of Spokane.
Joseph Ward Spokane
Service for Joseph L. Ward, 29, is set for 2 p.m. today at Thornhill Valley Funeral Home. Burial will be at Pines Cemetery.
Mr. Ward, who was born in Spokane, died Thursday from a head injury suffered in an Aug. 17 industrial accident in Spokane.
He had lived in Spokane for 25 years and graduated from Lewis and Clark High School.
Mr. Ward worked in Sun Valley, Idaho, as an auto body technician. He had worked construction for several people in Spokane.
He is survived by his wife of eight years, Crysta; two daughters, Tarra and Megann; his parents, Jim and Linda Ramsey of Spokane; his grandparents, Chet and Irene Widener of Spokane, and Katherine Widener of Spokane; a brother, Joshua Ramsey of Spokane; and three sisters, Renni Doney, and Heather and Alicia Ramsey, all of Spokane.
Kenneth Hall Elk
Service for Kenneth Steven Hall, 43, will be at 3 p.m. today at Peaceful Valley Church in Elk. Burial will follow at the Elk Cemetery. Sherman and Knapp Funeral Home of Newport, Wash., is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Hall died Friday at home.
He was born in Spokane.
He graduated from Riverside High School, where he met his future wife, Debbie Busch.
Mr. Hall worked as a logger and rancher.
He was a Sunday school teacher and an elder at Peaceful Valley Church.
He is survived by his wife of 21 years; four daughters, Stacie, Jessica, Cassidee and Lindsey; his mother, Betty Hall of Mead; a brother, Thomas Hall of Everett; two sisters, Christine Otto and Lisa Hall, both of Everett; and his grandmother, Dorothy Hall Richards.
Ralph Fowler St. John, Wash.
Memorial service for Ralph R. Fowler, 77, is planned for 2 p.m. Wednesday at St. John Methodist Church in St. John. Schanzenbach Funeral Home of Rosalia, Wash., is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Fowler, who was born in LaCrosse, Wash., died Saturday.
He was a farmer and was a member of Good Samaritan Episcopal Church in Colfax, Wash., and the St. John Golf Club.
Mr. Fowler served in the Army.
He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Hetty Fowler; a son, Dwight Fowler of St. John; two daughters, Susan Kile of Pine City, Wash., and Linda Gonzalez of State College, Pa.; three sisters, Vivian Todd of Inverness, Fla., Dorothy Moore of Lewiston and Elma Eccles of LaCrosse, Wash.; six grandchildren, two stepgrandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the St. John Emergency Medical Technicians or the St. John Golf Club.
Hazel Pugh Spokane
Private service for Hazel Anona Pugh, 101, has been held.
Born in Harrison, Idaho, Mrs. Pugh died Aug. 19.
She was a 70-year Spokane resident and worked at The Crescent department store from 1930 until 1962.
Mrs. Pugh was the oldest living member of First Baptist Church.
She is survived by a son, Lyle Pugh of Spokane; a daughter, Anona Stilson of Waverly; six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Lewell ‘Jay’ Northcott Spokane
Service for Lewell B. “Jay” Northcott, 76, will be at 10 a.m. today at Hennessey-Smith Funeral. Burial will be at Holy Cross Cemetery.
Mr. Northcott died Friday.
He was born in Bowlegs, Okla.
He served in the Army Air Corps during World War II and married Madonna Mohr in 1945 at Geiger Field.
He had lived in Spokane for 53 years and worked for the Coca-Cola Co. He began working for Great Northern Railway in 1950 and retired from the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1983.
He coached championship baseball teams for St. Charles Catholic School and the Riveridge Baseball Organization.
Mr. Northcott is survived by his wife; two sons, Jim and Steve Northcott; a daughter, Jan Moore; a brother, Olen Northcott; two sisters, Corky Pritchett and Pauline Kimmel; and one grandson.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association or the Spokane Youth Sports Baseball Association.
Grace McMillan Spokane
Graveside service for Grace N. McMillan, 76, will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Newport (Wash.) Cemetery. Sherman-Knapp Funeral Home of Newport is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. McMillan, who died Friday at Loganhurst Nursing Home in Spokane, was born in Usk, Wash.
She graduated from Cusick High School and attended trade school in Spokane.
During World War II, she worked on airplanes in Great Falls, Mont., where she met and married Walter McMillan of Arizona.
She lived and worked in California and Arizona until she returned to Spokane in 1960. She retired in 1980.
She was a member of the Eagles Lodge, Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary 1475 and the Usk Community Club.
Her husband, Walter, was killed during the war.
Mrs. McMillan is survived by two sisters, Floriene Meyers of Spokane and Martha Driver of Usk; and two brothers, Casey Lindsey of Laclede, Idaho, and Zane Lindsey of Corvallis, Ore.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Usk Community Hall or the Alzheimer’s Foundation.
Frances Barber Bonners Ferry, Idaho
Service for Frances Barber will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the United Methodist Church in Bonners Ferry. Bonners Ferry Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Barber, born in St. Louis, Mo., died Friday.
She moved to New York City at an early age and began working in movies at age 5. She began professional dancing in her early teens and danced for three years with the New York City Rockettes.
Mrs. Barber worked in the defense effort during World War II. After the war she moved to Spokane and worked for the Washington Department of Child Welfare.
She moved to Bonners Ferry in 1968.
She was active in Daughters of the Nile and was bookkeeper for Gene’s O.K. Tire Store until her retirement.
She is survived by her husband of 28 years, Gene; her stepdaughter, Lorrie Sherod of Deer Park; and three stepgrandchildren.
Memorials may be made to the Community Hospital Hospice Services.
Frances Overman Wallace
Memorial service for Frances E. Overman, 93, was Monday in Kellogg. Shoshone Funeral Service was in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Overman, who was born in Joplin, Mo., died Friday.
She moved to the Wallace area from Casper, Wyo., in 1950. She was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary and the Eagles Auxiliary.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Lee Overman.
Survivors include one son, Victor Overman of Osburn, Idaho; and five daughters, Inez Krueger of Hauser Lake, Idaho, Leona Riffle of Tucson, Ariz., Eleanor White of Spokane, Linnie Sterninzky of Renton, Wash., and Pat Dunn of Pinehurst, Idaho.
Memorials may be made to the Silver Wood Good Samaritan Center of Silverton, Idaho.
Dora Mathews Spokane
Service for Dora E. Matthews, 74, is set for 1 p.m. Wednesday at Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home. Burial will be at Greenwood Memorial Terrace.
Mrs. Mathews died Friday.
She was born in North Dakota and lived in Spokane for 63 years.
She is survived by two daughters, Judy Rothrock and Diane Gerimonte; a brother, Herb Kukuk; a sister, Erna Diemert; four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Helen Straight Spokane
Funeral Mass for Helen E. Straight, 94, will be at 10 a.m. today at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Coeur d’Alene. Burial will follow at St. Thomas Cemetery. Yates Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Straight, who was born in Wimbledon N.D., died Thursday.
She was raised in Potlatch, Idaho, and graduated from high school in Garfield, Wash. After graduating from Lewiston Normal College and Eastern Washington State College, she moved to Post Falls and taught school there from 1955 to 1964. She moved to Coeur d’Alene in 1965 and to Spokane in 1992.
She was a member of St. Thomas Church and Altar Society and the National Retired Teachers Association.
She was preceded in death by her first husband, Edward Reilly in 1948, and her second husband, Shirley Straight in 1980.
Survivors include two sons, Gerald Reilly of Woodburn, Ore., and James Reilly of St. Maries; one daughter, Jean Petty of Seattle; 10 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.
Lenora Tyllia Northport, Wash.
Rosary for Lenora Mary Tyllia, 86, is planned for 6 p.m. today at Danekas Funeral Chapel in Colville, Wash. Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Northport. Burial will follow at 3 p.m. at Holy Cross Cemetery in Spokane.
Mrs. Tyllia, a lifetime Northport, resident, died Saturday.
She married Alex Tyllia in 1938. He died last September.
Mrs. Tyllia was a member of Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church and the Altar Society.
Survivors include a son, Frank Tyllia of Kirkland, Wash.; a sister, Irene Daily of Colville, Wash.; and a brother, Joe Janni of Wenatchee.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association.
Robert Boyer Spokane
Service for Robert K. Boyer, 75, will be at 11 a.m. today at Thornhill Valley Funeral Home. Burial will be at Pines Cemetery.
Mr. Boyer, a 50-year Spokane resident, died Friday.
He was born in Farmington, Wash., and graduated from high school there.
He served in the Army Air Force during World War II.
Mr. Boyer was an auto mechanic and had worked for Boeing in Seattle, for Buchanan Chevrolet and for the government at Deep Creek.
He retired from the Spokane County Parks and Recreation Department in 1983.
In 1950 he and his father built the family home in the Spokane Valley, and in 1961 he built a summer home on Lake Coeur d’Alene. He also helped with the building of the West Valley football stadium.
He spent his summers at Lake Coeur d’Alene and his winters in Yuma, Ariz.
He is survived by his wife, of 53 years, Emma Jean; two daughters, Sally Revious and Susan Reiter, both of Spokane; three brothers, Max Boyer of Tekoa, Wash., and John and George Boyer, both of Spokane; a sister, Georgina Rotchford of Coeur d’Alene; three grandsons and a great-grandchild.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Spokane.
Harry Barge Spokane
Service for Harry A. Barge, 86, will be at 2 p.m. today at Ball and Dodd Funeral Home-North. Burial will be at Fairmount Memorial Park.
Born in Sedalia, Mo., Mr. Barge died Thursday.
He had lived in Spokane since 1945, when he was discharged from the Army here.
He worked as a bartender and house painter and managed the Heatherstone Apartments. He retired in 1989.
His wife of 53 years, Geraldine Barge, died in 1993.
, DataTimes