Obituary: Inks, Wilbur O.
Age 96
(Age 96) Wilbur was born in Berthold, ND., on April 10, 1917 to Ora and Lela Inks.
He attended school through grade 9 in East Wenatchee.
There were five children with meager income, so life was simple.
As a young boy, Wilbur worked many small jobs to buy clothes, books, etc.
At seventeen, he went to work on the Grand Coulee Dam for 50 cents an hour.
He met Thelma L. Kephart in the spring of 1936 at a Bible study in the home of a friend.
They were married on June 7, 1936.
They welcomed two sons; Louis, in 1937, and Fred in 1939.
Eventually, they moved to Spokane where Wilbur worked odd jobs until the family moved to Valleyford.
He worked mining clay in Mica, WA.
Wilbur went to trade school and was subsequently employed at Geiger Field for five years repairing planes.
Uncle Sam called and after basic training, he was stationed at Smyrna, TN, and Biloxi, MS. After the war, he returned home to Spokane, spending seventeen years working at the Sperry Flour Mill of General Mills.
During at that period, their third son, Chuck, joined their family.
When General Mills closed the plant, he went to work for Boge’s Bakery and worked as the supervisor of the Sanitation Department.
After seventeen years, it was time to retire.
Wilbur had many interests, including being an avid hunter for forty plus years, scoutmaster for ten years, and the National Scoutmaster in 1953 and 1957.
He was the caretaker at Camp Sekani, the Boy Scout on Upriver Drive, for twenty five years.
He was honored with the highest award in scouting, the Silver Beaver.
He loved growing flowers, and his yard looked like a park.
He was also very active in this church from membership, to SS teacher, to board member, and to leader of the senior group.
He also had a love for running.
He ran in over twenty Bloomsday runs, and hundreds of other runs.
He was invited to run in the Master Track and Field events.
He started running in 1984 and stopped in 2007.
Oh, what a life!
After retirement, Wilbur and Thelma traveled extensively: trips to the East coast, Alaska, the Holy Land, China, Japan, Mexico, and the Panama Canal; and of course, trips to see the grandkids.
Wilbur never lost his love for His Lord.
Even at 96, he was creating ways to share God’s love with everyone he met.
He is now with His Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, having entered Heaven’s gates on November 27, 2013.
Memorial services will be held at the Valley Assembly Church, 15618 E. Broadway, Spokane Valley, WA on Saturday, January 11, 2014 at 10:00am.