Obituaries
Roy Olson Spokane
Memorial service for Roy Theodore Olson, 90, will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Messiah Lutheran Church. Private burial will precede the service at Riverside Memorial Park. Riplinger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Olson, who was born in Everett, died Sunday.
He was a Spokane resident for more than 56 years.
Mr. Olson received a bachelor’s degree in dairy science and bacteriology from Washington State College in 1934.
In 1935 he married Adelia Gustafson.
From 1935 to 1942 he worked as the plant engineer and bacteriologist at Carnation Dairy in Oakland, Calif.
During World War II he worked for the state Health Department in Seattle for plague control.
In the 1950s he taught civil defense classes on radiation monitoring for the city of Spokane.
From 1954 to 1970 he was a reserve officer in Public Health Services.
He worked as the director of environment health for the city of Spokane and Spokane County for 30 years. He retired in 1973.
Mr. Olson received the Sanitarians Distinguished Service Award from the International Association of Sanitarians and Outstanding Sanitarian from the Washington State Association of Sanitarians.
He co-authored a paper on the control of mastitis in dairy cows.
Mr. Olson was a hearing officer for the Panhandle Health District and the chairman of the Pinto Point Sewage District in Priest Lake, Idaho.
He was a member of Messiah Lutheran Church and the Washington State Board of Registered Sanitarians. He also was a member, volunteer and branch president of Lutheran Brotherhood Branch 8297.
His wife died in 1998.
Survivors include two daughters, Carole Herrlinger of Spokane and Susan Haworth of San Jose, Calif.; a son, David Olson of Golden, Colo.; two sisters, Doris Smith of Olympia and Irene Simcox of Punta Gorda, Fla.; nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Messiah Lutheran Church or to Lutherhaven Camp.
Keith Geer Hayden, Idaho
At his request no services will be held for Keith Geer, 88. Coeur d’Alene Memorial Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Geer, who was born in Iowa, died Aug. 31.
He graduated from high school in Clarinda, Iowa.
Mr. Geer moved to Medical Lake in 1966, to Lewiston in 1990, and to Hayden in 1995.
He married Anita Weitz in 1973 in Spokane.
Mr. Geer worked for Lakeland Village, near Medical Lake, for 23 years as a mechanic before retiring in 1982.
Survivors include his wife, at home; two daughters, Helen Cloonan of San Diego and Judy Hilsabeck of Spokane; a son, David Kiehn of Seattle; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of North Idaho, 9493 Government Way, Hayden, ID 83835.
Maford Sharp Steptoe, Wash.
Service for Maford C. Sharp, 85, will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Bruning Funeral Home in Colfax, Wash. Burial will follow at the Bethel Cemetery in Steptoe.
A lifetime Steptoe resident, Mr. Sharp died Wednesday.
He worked as a surveyor for Whitman County. In 1942 he began working as a warehouseman for Whitman County Grain Growers in Steptoe. He retired in 1980.
Mr. Sharp was a member of the Steptoe Grange and the Elks Lodge in Colfax.
His wife, Frances, died March 14.
Survivors include a son, Richard Sharp of Salem, Ore.; a daughter, Margaret Doneen of Laguna Hills, Calif.; a sister, Katharine Cole of Spokane; three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Bethel Cemetery Association, Steptoe, WA 99174.
Margaret McElroy Spokane
Service for Margaret Rose McElroy, 78, will be at 2 p.m. today at St. John Vianney Roman Catholic Church. Burial will follow at the Pines Cemetery.
A lifetime Spokane resident, Mrs. McElroy died Tuesday.
She worked as a purchasing agent for a local supply company.
Survivors include a son, Bob McElroy of Spokane; two granddaughters and four great-grandchildren.
Donald Curtin Nampa, Idaho
Memorial service for Donald “Don” J. Curtin, 86, was held Aug. 31 at First United Presbyterian Church, Nampa. Graveside rites were at Kohlerlawn Cemetery.
Mr. Curtin, who was born in Dalton Gardens, Idaho, died Aug. 28 in Nampa.
He worked for Armour and Co. as head cattle purchaser from 1938 to 1976 in Spokane, Portland, St. Paul, Minn., and Nampa. He retired in 1976.
In 1985 he spent three months in Jamaica, volunteering on a governmental livestock project with International Executive Services.
He married Catherine Keating in 1939 in Spokane. She died in 1965.
Mr. Dean attended the Presbyterian Church.
He married Edie Van Burskirk in 1969.
Survivors include his wife, Edie; two sons, Dan Curtin of Telluride, Colo., and John Curtin of Redmond, Wash.; two daughters, Vicki Luedke of Genesee, Idaho, and Sherri Morse of Sandpoint; four sisters, Velma Halcy, Alice Nicks, Bonnie Powell and Myrte Englehardt; and two brothers, Norm and Lee Van Burskirk.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Research Boise Chapter, 4696 Orchard Road, Suite 482, Boise, ID 83705, or First Presbyterian Church, 400 Lake Lowell Ave., Nampa, ID 83686.
Katey Soltau Coeur d’Alene
Service for Kathryn Grace Soltau, 18, will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Trinity Lutheran Church in Coeur d’Alene. Burial will follow at Forest Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday at Yates Funeral Home, Coeur d’Alene Chapel.
Miss Soltau, who was born in Coeur d’Alene, died Tuesday from injuries suffered in an automobile accident.
She grew up in Coeur d’Alene and graduated from Lake City High School. She was attending North Idaho College, where she was studying elementary education.
Miss Soltau worked on the school yearbook, took dance lessons for eight years, was an avid snowboarder and attended the Worley (Idaho) Community Church.
Survivors include her parents, Roy and Cheryl Soltau, at home; her grandparents, Bud and Lorraine Soltau of Alamo, Calif.; her boyfriend, Ryan White of Coeur d’Alene; and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.
Lawrence Johnson Renton, Wash.
Memorial service for Lawrence H. “Bus” Johnson, 83, will be held at a later date in Spokane. Flintoft’s Issaquah (Wash.) Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
A longtime former Spokane resident, Mr. Johnson died Sunday. He was born in Malden, Wash., and graduated from North Central High School.
Mr. Johnson served in the Army National Guard as a sergeant before World War II.
In 1940 he married Wilma Catlow.
He worked for the Milwaukee Railroad in Spokane for 20 years before retiring in 1960. Mr. Johnson then worked as a claims adjuster in the insurance industry.
His family moved to Renton in 1968 and he worked as an adjuster for Fireman’s Fund. He retired from that job in 1979.
Survivors include his wife; a son, Larry Johnson of Spokane; a daughter, Trish Fleischer of Burbank, Wash.; and three granddaughters.
Memorial contributions may be made to PAWS, P.O. Box 1037, Lynnwood, WA 98046.
George Dean St. Maries
Graveside service for George O. Dean, 74, will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Riverside Cemetery in Santa, Idaho. A family and friends gathering will follow at the C.A.F. Building in Fernwood, Idaho. Yates-Hodge Funeral Home in St. Maries is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Dean, who was born in Freer, Texas, died Aug. 30.
He served in the U.S. Air Force for two years in France and Germany.
He worked as a long-haul and a logging truck driver.
Survivors include four sons, Greg and Timothy Dean, both of Lewiston, Idaho, Marvin Dean of the Grand Caymen Islands and Monty Rich of Culpepper, Va.; three daughters, Opal Dean of Spokane, Carlena Hjaltalin of Fernwood and Geneva Jacobson of Lapwai, Idaho; a brother, Steve Cash of Florida; a sister, Thelma of Georgia; and 10 grandchildren.
Bertha Woolsey Coeur d’Alene
Funeral services for Bertha V. Woolsey, 95, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at English Funeral Chapel, Coeur d’Alene.
Mrs. Woolsey, who was born in Weippe, Idaho, died Tuesday.
She married Allen Woolsey in 1925 in St. Maries, and they moved to Coeur d’Alene in 1927.
She was a clerk at the Woolworth Store for several years.
Her husband, Allen, died in 1982.
She was a member of the Kootenai County Saddle Club, the Grandmothers’ Club, the Coeur d’Alene General Hospital Auxiliary, and the Community United Methodist Church and was a lifetime member of the Eagles Auxiliary.
Survivors include a daughter, Barbara Rudolph of Otis Orchards; six grandchildren, Bob Van Kleeck of Kellogg, Peggy Yingling, of Grangeville, Idaho, Ron Rudolph of Spokane, Lynn Rudolph of Otis Orchards, and Cherie Holm and Arlene Galloway, both of Spokane; and eight great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Community Untied Methodist Church, 1470 W. Hanley, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814.
Maxine Dickerson Sparks, Nev.
Memorial service for Maxine Vivian (Desilet) Dickerson, 82, will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Augustine Roman Catholic Church in Spokane. Walton’s Sparks (Nev.) Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Born in Cloquet, Minn., Mrs. Dickerson died Sunday.
She lived in Spokane from 1936 to 1941 and during World War II worked in the Signal Corps. She then went on to work with the U.S. Foreign Service.
In 1957 she married Denver Dickerson and became a homemaker.
They traveled while her husband was in the military.
Mrs. Dickerson returned to Spokane in 1982 from Washington, D.C. She moved to Sparks in 1996.
Her husband died in 1981.
Survivors include a son, Jeffrey Dickerson of Sparks; two brothers, Philip Desilet of Jerome, Idaho, and Leroy Desilet of Sequim, Wash.; and two grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 712 Mill St., Reno, NV 89502.
Elaine (Crighton) Lennox Spokane
Visitation for Elaine C. (Crighton) Lennox, 84, will be from noon to 8 p.m. today at Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home. Service is planned for 10 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home. Burial will follow at Fairmount Memorial Park.
Mrs. Lennox, who was born in Conrad, Mont., died Tuesday.
She was a 57-year Spokane resident.
Mrs. Lennox worked as a secretary for Sunset Electric, Atlas Boiler and Equipment and Frey Ford Co., all in Spokane.
She was a member of Park Heights Baptist Church.
Her husband, Lachlan, died in 1985.
Survivors include two daughters, Laurel Powell and Lucy Lennox, both of Spokane; a son, Lance Lennox of Post Falls; two sisters, Lorna Nelson and Barbara Samuelson; six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.
Agnes Nystrom Spokane
Memorial service for Agnes “Aggie” Nystrom, 83, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at Redeemer Lutheran Church. Hazen and Jaeger Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Nystrom, who was born in Wolf Point, Mont., died Monday.
She was a 75-year Spokane resident.
Mrs. Nystrom worked as a seamstress from her home, and was a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church.
Her husband, Walter, preceded her in death.
Survivors include a daughter, Ruth Wager of Spokane; a brother, George Solberg of Reno, Nev.; three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
E. Leigh Boyd Palouse, Wash.
Memorial service for Elsie Leigh MacArthur Boyd, 37, will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at Pine Hills Funeral Chapel in Orofino, Idaho.
Ms. Boyd, who was born in Metaline Falls, Wash., died Saturday.
She graduated from Orofino High School and attended North Idaho College and Lewis-Clark State College.
She was a research assistant at the Washington State University Veterinary Clinic.
Survivors include a daughter, Kristine Boyd, and a son, Thomas Boyd, both at home; her mother, Jean McCarter of Peck, Idaho; and two sisters, Jackie Cram of Palouse and Brenda Capps of Reno, Nev.