Obituaries
John George Jr.
Pullman
Funeral for John E. George Jr., 85, was held Dec. 1 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Pullman.
Mr. George died Nov. 21.
Born in Pend Oreille County, he graduated from Metaline Falls (Wash.) High School and began studies at Washington State College in 1938.
He married Mary Easto of Pullman in 1939 and the couple returned to Metaline Falls, where Mr. George worked in the mines and helped on the family dairy farm before returning to continue his studies at WSC.
He served in the Navy from 1944 to 1946, returning to WSC and graduating in 1947 with a degree in agricultural engineering. He then began his career at WSC, starting as a laboratory technician and working his way up to full professor. He taught agricultural engineering, welding class, wood shop, machine shop and irrigation.
During the summers he worked in research and developed farm equipment for different agricultural functions. During this time he also earned a master’s degree from the University of Idaho.
He retired in 1988 after 40 years.
He thought of himself as a farmer and enjoyed the time he spent on the farm in Metaline Falls and the old Easto place along the Lewiston highway.
His other interests included tools and building things, finance and business, and cowboy poetry.
In his late 70s he started building an addition to his house he called the “thinking room.”
Mr. George was a member of the Society of Agricultural Engineers, Kiwanis and Cowboy Poets.
His wife died in 1969.
Survivors include his son, John George of Orcas Island, Wash.; a daughter, Rosemary George of Bothell, Wash.; four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Thelma Fleming
Spokane
Memorial service for Thelma O. Fleming, 90, will be today at 11 a.m. at Rockwood Manor South. Ball and Dodd Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Fleming died Monday.
Born in Spokane, she grew up in the Hays Park area. She attended Regal and Hillyard schools, and in 1932 was among the first graduating class at Rogers High School. She received a scholarship to Northwestern Business College, then worked for Wylie Carlson Drug Store and Newberrys.
During World War II she and her husband worked in the Seattle shipyards. Upon returning to Spokane they worked for the Deary Oil Co. for 28 years before retiring.
Mrs. Fleming lived in Spokane’s Liberty Park area for 50 years and was a member of the Liberty Park United Methodist Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband.
Survivors include a niece, Joyce Squires of Olympia; and friend and caretaker, Dorothy Stangler of Spokane.
Memorial contributions may be made to Liberty Park United Methodist Church.
Maureen Trip
Spokane
Inurnment for Maureen Smith Trip, 77, will be at Pines Cemetery with her parents. Hazen and Jaeger Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Trip, who was born in Pomeroy, Wash., died Dec. 12.
After graduating from high school she worked at various office jobs, including at a Los Angeles bank, and rest homes in Washington and Oregon.
She married Wayne Trip In 1961 in Salem, Ore. He died two years later. Mrs. Trip lived in Salem until she retired to Spokane several years ago.
She loved flying and during the time she spent in California she occasionally rode as a passenger in a private plane with her brother-in-law, enjoying the acrobatics he sometimes performed.
Survivors include a brother, Herbert Smith of Hesperia, Calif.; and five sisters, Frances Emerson of Everett, Vivian Smith of Bandon, Ore., Clarice Stancliffe of Ventura, Calif., Blanche Frizzell of Bremerton and Genevieve Scharn of Salem.
Clara ‘Queenie’ Johnson
Emida, Idaho
No service will be held for Clara “Queenie’ ‘ (Briggs) Johnson, 77, at her request. Hodge Funeral Home in St. Maries is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Johnson, who was born in Lewiston, died Saturday.
She grew up in Almota, Wash., and graduated from high school in Rosalia, Wash.
Mrs. Johnson began working at the Lincoln County auditors office in Davenport, Wash., in the early 1970s. She retired in 1992 and moved to Emida. She enjoyed horses, fishing, hunting and caring for animals.
Survivors include a sister, Etta Warner of Spokane; and seven nieces and nephews.
Rudolph Koch
Spokane
Funeral for Rudolph “Rudy” Koch, 91, will be Wednesday at 11 a.m. at Emanuel Lutheran Church, with vault burial at Emanuel Lutheran Cemetery. Danekas Funeral Home, Ritzville, Wash., is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Koch, who died Friday, was born in Ritzville.
He attended schools there before working on the railroad, later working on area farms, logging at Deer Park and also working for Kalkwarf Motors.
He married Elsie Derr in 1935 in Spokane. In 1941 he began working for the Ritzville School District as a mechanic and later became the district maintenance supervisor. He retired in 1975.
After he retired, Mr. Koch built a garage at home and started a heating and air conditioning business, working until 1995.
He and his wife moved to Spokane in 2000.
His wife died in 2002.
Survivors include two sons, Dennis Koch of Ritzville and Michael Koch of Mzuzu, Malawi, Africa; four sisters, Nathalia Vanderford of Calistoga, Calif., Olga Maley of Thornton, Wash., Geraldine Hagadone of Yakima and Thelma Sprenger; a brother Carl Koch of Spokane; three grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and six great-great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions maybe made to Emanuel Lutheran Church.
Mary McCain
Spokane
Funeral for Mary Holman McCain, 83, will be today at 9 a.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Stake Center, with interment to follow at Greenwood Memorial Terrace. Ball and Dodd Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. McCain, who was born in Manassa, Colo., died Monday.
She married Ken McCain in Denver in 1944. As a military couple, she and her husband lived all over the world until retirement in 1963.
Mrs. McCain worked a nurses aide for Red Cross, while her husband served in World War II, and for many years at Interlake Medical Center.
She was a member of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers and was proud of her pioneer heritage. She was a longtime member of the Spokane Mushroom Club.
She was involved in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and along with her husband served a church mission in Tampa, Fla., from 1985 to 1986. She was a volunteer for the Spokane Washington Mission Office and as a name extractor at her home.
Her husband died in 1995.
Survivors include four children, Gary McCain of Boise, Dennis McCain of Kennewick, Marvin McCain of Pullman and Curt Lybbert of Highland, Utah; a brother, Manassa, Colo.; 13 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
Debra Gruol
Endicott, Wash.
Funeral for Debra Lee Gruol, 52, will be today at 2 p.m. at the Colfax Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Burial will follow at Endicott Cemetery.
Mrs. Gruol, who died Saturday, was born in Camp Polk, La.
She moved frequently as a child before graduating from high school in San Diego in 1970. Following graduation she moved to Spokane, where her mother was living.
She married Douglas Gruol in 1975, and they lived in Spokane and Germany before moving to Colfax in 1987 after her husband was discharged from the service.
Mrs. Gruol worked several jobs in the area. She worked most of the time as a nurses aide for Palouse Alternative Care Center. She also worked in central supply at the hospital and at Bill’s Dry-Cleaning.
She moved to Endicott in 1994.
She was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She bowled in a league in Colfax. She enjoyed cross-stitch, scrapbooking and stamping, and loved touring museums.
Survivors include her husband; two stepbrothers, Marty Palmer of Seattle and R.D. Palmer of Utah; and a stepsister, Callie Palmer of Seattle.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Endicott Fire Department and Emergency Medical Technicians.
Duane Hickey
Spokane
No service will be held for Duane J. Hickey, 68, at his request. Ball and Dodd Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Hickey, who died Saturday, was born in Spokane.
He married Donna Bretthauer in 1955.
Mr. Hickey worked for the Federal Aviation Administration for 30 years until retiring in 1993.
Survivors include his wife; two sons, Scott and Dale; a daughter, Debbie Patterson; and two grandsons.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Spokane.
Lorene Mikoski
Gig Harbor, Wash.
Memorial service for Lorene F. Mikoski, 92, will be Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the chapel at Holy Cross Cemetery in Spokane.
She was born in Herman, Wis. Her early years were spent speaking only German on the family dairy farm; she learned English in elementary school. Her family moved to a farm near the town of Havre, Mont. They later moved to Kalispell, Mont., where she graduated from high school in 1930.
She moved to Spokane, where she lived from 1930 until 2002, when she moved to Gig Harbor.
Her initial foray into the Spokane business community came when she opened her own beauty salon. She and her husband went into the home construction business at the conclusion of World War II and built a number of homes in north Spokane. She was one of the first women in Washington state to hold a contractor’s license.
She enjoyed gardening, travel, painting and home repair.
Her husband of 33 years, Stanley Mikoski, died in 1966.
Survivors include three daughters, Sandra Ehrhardt of Marysville, Wash., Lana Solnick of Gig Harbor and Bonnie Travis of San Diego; a brother, Robert Hafferman of Kalispell; seven grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren.
Roy Johnson
Westmond, Idaho
Memorial service for Roy Johnson, 83, will be held at a later date. Private burial will take place at Westmond (Idaho) Cemetery. Coffelt Funeral Service in Sandpoint is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Johnson, who was born in Akron, Colo., died Dec. 18.
At age 6 he moved with his family to Kelso, Wash., where he grew up and attended high school.
He later worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps, before moving to Seattle to work for Boeing.
Mr. Johnson married Helen Olmstead in 1942 and served with the Army Air Corps during World War II.
He returned to Kelso after his military service and worked in the lumber industry until buying a farm in the Westmond area in 1957.
He enjoyed farming, and in his later years spent time in Oregon, California and Arizona.
He enjoyed music and the outdoors.
Survivors include his wife; four sons, Ronald of Marquette, Mich., Lester of Spokane, Steve of Westmond and Richard of Okanogan, Wash.; a sister, Alice Farrell; nine grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
Memorials may be made to Toys for Tots.
Altha (Dial) Maughan
Coeur d’Alene
Visitation for Altha Devota (Dial) Maughan, 75, was held Wednesday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Rathdrum, Idaho. Burial took place at Mount View Cemetery in Athol, Idaho.
Mrs. Maughan, who was born in Milin, Wash., died Sunday.
She married Dean Maughan in 1945, and they lived in Spokane until moving to Colville in 1980.
The couple moved to Athol in 2000.
She was a member of the Mormon Church.
Mrs. Maughan enjoyed quilting and restoring dolls and donated her handiwork to the Children’s Village and Court-Appointed Special Advocates.
Survivors include her husband; seven children, Mike, Vern and Matt Maughan, all of Spokane, Kerry Maughan of Clarkston, Kathy Scranton of Athol, and Kris Tome and Deena Watson, both of Ogden, Utah; three brothers, Dennis Dial of Colville, Dallas Dial of Mesa, Ariz., and Dick Dial of Auburn, Wash.; two sisters, Pauline Bastian of Colville and Colleen Mott of Linden, Utah; 32 grandchildren and 27 great-grandchildren.
Heskett Baker Jr.
Spokane
Funeral for Heskett John Baker Jr., 83, will be Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home.
Mr. Baker died Monday.
Born in Roseburg, Ore., he graduated from high school there in 1940, and married his high school sweetheart, Virginia.
He served two and a half years as a pharmacist mate in the Navy during World War II.
He lived in Eugene, Ore., until moving to Spokane in 1964.
Mr. Baker worked in the grocery business most of his adult life. He managed stores for McKay’s in Oregon, Rosauers and Starbuck’s in Spokane. After he retired in 1986, he kept active in the grocery business by working for food brokerages resetting stores.
He enjoyed camping, fishing and traveling to the Oregon Coast with his family.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Paula Lobdell and Janet Bowman; five grandchildren and five great-grandsons.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Spokane or to the Alzheimer’s Association.