Obituaries

John ‘Clif’ Little Spokane

Memorial service for John Clifton ‘Clif’ Little, a pastor with a doctorate in education, will be at 3 p.m. April 19 at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church. Thornhill Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Little, 76, who was born in Berrytown, Pa., died Sunday.

He graduated in 1940 from South Side High School in Elmira, N.Y. He then graduated from Gordon Divinity School.

Mr. Little preached and sang at the Berean Baptist Church in Brunswick, Maine, where he met and married his accompanist, Mary Hyde, in 1946.

He then pastored at Baptist churches in Five Islands and Georgetown, Maine, East Rochester, N.H., and Pigeon Cove, Mass.

In 1952 Mr. Little received a commission as chaplain in the Air Force, serving at Webb Air Force Base in Big Spring, Texas; Elmendorf in Anchorage, Alaska; and Graham in Mariana, Fla. While in Alaska during the Korean War, he earned the title “Leapin’ Deacon” in an armed forces training film featuring his work visiting service men and women deep into the arctic.

After military service, he pastored at Baptist churches in Canisteo and Buffalo, N.Y., while working on his master’s degree in education at Alfred University and his doctorate in education at the University of Buffalo in 1964. He wrote his thesis on race relations. While in college, he worked as a taxi driver.

That fall, Mr. Little came to work at Whitworth College where he taught courses in sociology. He also taught sociology and family relations courses at Jamestown College in North Dakota, Spokane Falls Community College, Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Jarvis Christian College in Hawkins, Texas, and Asbury College in Wilmore, Ky.

Mr. Little was president of the Human Relations Council of Spokane in the late 1960s and worked for World Book Encyclopedia. He also served as a judge on KHQ’s “High School Bowl.”

He was speaker and moderator in the mid to late 1970s at the Vis a Vis Coffee House in Spokane, later becoming talk show host of “Spokane Speaks” on KUDY Christian Radio.

In 1973 Mr. Little returned to driving taxi cabs in Spokane and drove up until a few days before his death.

In 1985 he became urban minister at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church and was involved in the beginning of Our Place, a community outreach organization located in the Courthouse area.

Since then, he had served as interim pastor in churches from Deer Park to Davenport to Rosalia, Wash.

He was a member of a bowling league in which he was active until his death and had previously won father-son golf tournaments with his son Bob, at Wandermere Golf Course in both 1996 and 1997.

Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Clarice White of Bonners Ferry, Idaho, and Candace Gremler of Moscow, Idaho; two sons, John Little Jr. of San Jose, Calif., and Robert Little of Spokane; 11 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Memorial contributions may be made to Our Place Ministries or to St. Paul’s United Methodist Church.

Christian ‘Buster’ Seely Jr. Coeur d’Alene

A gathering for Christian T. “Buster” Seely Jr., 38, will be held today at 1 p.m. at the home of Laura Milks, 842 Larch, Rathdrum, Idaho. English Funeral Chapel in Coeur d’Alene is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Seely, who was born in Baton Rouge, La., died Monday in an automobile accident near Garwood, Idaho.

He had lived in Spokane until moving to the Coeur d’Alene area in 1973 and worked as a carpenter in the construction business.

Survivors include a son, Brian Brown Seely of Coeur d’Alene; a daughter, Tieara Best of Lewiston; his parents, Chris and Ginger Seely of Anchorage, Alaska; a brother, Eric Seely of Seattle; two sisters, Catherine Fretwell of American Falls, Idaho, and Laura Milks of Rathdrum; and his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Gay of Baton Rouge.

Lester ‘Les’ Kurrus Sandpoint

Private family service for Lester R. “Les” Kurrus, 73, was held earlier. Coffelt Funeral Service in Sandpoint was in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Kurrus, who was born in Illinois, died Monday.

He served with the Air Force during World War II and later lived in Spokane before settling in Sandpoint in 1967.

Mr. Kurrus owned a Kawasaki shop in Sandpoint and later worked for the Alpine Shop, Monarch Saw Shop and the Bonner Saw Sales in Priest River, Idaho.

He retired and worked in the senior citizens program with the U.S. Forest Service in Sandpoint.

Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Jean; three children, Leslie Maxey of Sagle, Idaho, Kendall Simm of California and Kris Kurrus of Spokane; six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Marvin Hooker Mullan, Idaho

Memorial service for Marvin Hart Hooker, 70, will be Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the Wallace Assembly of God Church. Shoshone Funeral Service is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Hooker, who was born in West Virginia, died April 8.

He had lived in Butte, Mont., before moving to the Silver Valley in 1968 and working as a miner for Hecla Mining Co. He retired in 1993.

Mr. Hooker was a member of the United Steelworkers Union and the Wallace Assembly of God Church.

Survivors include his wife of 24 years, Frances; and numerous friends.

Memorials may be made to the Diabetes Foundation or the Wallace Assembly of God Church, P.O. Box 499, Wallace, ID 83873.

Gladys Orr Redmond, Wash.

Service for Gladys P. Orr, 91, will be Tuesday at 1 p.m. at English Funeral Chapel in Coeur d’Alene. Burial will be at Coeur d’Alene Memorial Gardens.

Mrs. Orr, who was born in North Dakota, died last Tuesday.

She moved to Coeur d’Alene in 1955 and to Bellevue in 1990. She moved to Redmond in 1996.

She had been a member of the Coeur d’Alene Trinity Lutheran Church.

Her husband, Merril, died in 1989.

Survivors include two sons, James Orr of Coeur d’Alene and Curtis Orr of Bellevue; seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.