Obituary: Ames, Melvin Leroy
Age 75
Born January 4, 1940, Mel was born in The Dalles, Oregon the oldest of three children to Herbert and Beulah Ames.
Prior to his birth, the family left Lamar, Colorado during the dust bowl to Irrigon, Oregon and settled above Maupin, Oregon on a 600 cow-calf operation.
Mel grew up a cowboy on that ranch with his little sister Millie and at 16, moved to a new ranch purchased on Johnson Creek near Omak.
He juggled school, rodeo, shoeing horses and a full time hay operation by himself until the rest of the family moved to the Okanogan in the fall of 1958.
After high school, Mel went to Auctioneering School in Billings, MT.
Auctioneering along with shoeing horses became one of Mel’s many entrepreneurial ventures.
His rodeo career and passion for calf roping led to two pivotal points in his life; meeting and marrying the love of his life, Janette Smith in 1966 and his starting the Washington Rodeo Association in 1967.
His world expanded again with the start of the M Bar J Trailer Ranch, one of the first mobile home parks in North Central Washington in 1971.
He could always be found with his sidekick, his son Brandon, born in 1969.
The park grew to 42 spaces and became the foundation for his and Jan’s lives together.
Mel and Jan were blessed with a daughter, Melissa in 1972.
Once the park was finished, he stretched his world again into real estate becoming one of the few real estate brokers in North Central Washington selling what he knew, the great outdoors.
Orchards, land and ranches were his specialty.
His sudden onset of cardio myopathy in 1979 slowed his world significantly and would be a defining challenge in his life.
He was a miracle of modern drug therapy till his heart transplant in 2000.
But even health issues would not hamper his life’s greatest pride and joy, his beautiful wife and kids.
His commitment to family became his and Jan’s focus and many years of joy ensued as a result.
So much so that when the kids went away to college, they quasi adopted a young man who lived in the mobile home park and raised him as their own.
Jeff Koplin would be one of many that benefited from Mel’s wisdom, guidance and tutelage in calf roping and life.
As Melissa’s equine business grew, Mel’s support continued by driving horses across the country to horse shows and working as a stable hand.
His love of life, people and animals was legendary and his soul will be missed by all who knew him.
Melvin is survived by his wife Janette of Okanogan; his son Brandon of Chandler, AZ; his daughter Melissa Sexton of Okanogan; his granddaughter, Austyn Ames of Chandler, AZ; his loving sister, Mildred Gann; nephew Audie Gann of Omak, WA and niece Alicia Chapman of Tacoma, WA.
He was preceded in death by father and mother, Herb and Beulah Ames and baby sister Arlene.
The viewing will be on Tuesday, June 30, 2015 at 6-9 PM at Precht-Harrison-Nearents Chapel in Omak.
The Celebration of Life services and cowboy potluck meat provided by Smallwood’s Fruit Stand will be held on Wednesday, July 1st, 2015 at the M Bar J Ranch Indoor Arena, 1726 Old Hwy 97, Okanogan, WA at 11:00 am.
Western or Casual Attire Suggested.
Interment will be at the Malott Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are being accepted at to the Providence Health Care Foundation in support of their heart transplant program at 101 W. 8th Ave., Spokane, WA 99204, or https://providence.thankyou4caring.org/DonateNow.
Ames funeral lodging has been secured with the Peppertree Inn Best Western in Omak at 509-422-2088.
Precht-Harrison-Nearents Chapel is in care of the arrangements.