Alice Morehead

La Grande

1906-2003

Alice F. MacDonald Morehead, 97, of La Grande, died June 26 at her home.

A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Daniels Chapel of the Valley with the Rev. Norman Shrumm of the First Presbyterian Church officiating. Committal and burial will follow at Hillcrest Cemetery.

Viewing will be held today from 3 to 6 p.m. at Daniels Chapel.

Mrs. Morehead was born on June 15, 1906, in Knappa, to Angus and Lenore MacDonald. She moved with her parents to a homestead near Ontario. She attended pioneer schools, Payette Idaho High School and St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing.

Mrs. Morehead was an active member of many groups in La Grande, including Camp Fire Girls, Rainbow Girls, Eastern Star, Daughter of the Nile, Knife and Fork Club, Daughters of the American Revolution, Magna Carta Dames, Sons & Daughter of the Oregon Pioneers and a longtime member of the Presbyterian Church.

Mrs. Morehead practiced her nursing career in the early days of the profession when much was done in private duty. She also helped with youth organizations, and her final work was nurse for Eastern Oregon University.

In 1929 she married Forest Jones and was widowed soon after. She married Bruce Morehead on Nov. 24, 1935. They lived at the Mount Emily Headquarters at Starkey before moving to Cove in the mid-1960s. They moved to La Grande in 1981, and Mr. Morehead preceded her in death on Aug. 29, 1984.

She was very artistic, loved gardening, bulldogs, anything historical and spent years working on genealogy and had traced her family back to the Black Knight of Scotland.

Survivors include her son, Paul Bruce Morehead of Joseph; daughter, Alice Lenore "Lynn" Morehead Pio of Salem; sister, Margaret Davis; six grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren; eight great-great-grandchildren; a niece and other relatives.

A granddaughter, Mary Katherine Morehead, preceded her in death.

Memorials may be made to the Shriner’s Hospital for Children, 3101 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, or the charity of the giver’s

choice.

Lawrence

Bergstrom

La Grande

1937-2003

Lawrence "Larry" Bergstrom, 65, of La Grande died June 23 at his home. A private service will be held later. Loveland Funeral Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Bergstrom was born Sept. 5, 1937, to Theodore and Edith Eriksson Bergstrom at Alexandria, Minn. On Dec. 2, 1971, he married Nancy Narron in Carson City, Nev. The couple moved to Union in 1988 and later to La Grande, where he worked at various jobs including transporting crews for the Union Pacific Railroad. He enjoyed fishing, bowling, road trips and his dogs.

Survivors include a daughter, Jereline Horn of Overland Park, Kansas; three grandchildren; three brothers, Waldo Bergstrom of St. Cloud, Minn., Reynold Bergstrom of San Jose, Calif., and Arnold Bergstrom of Union; a sister, Florence Jung of Osseo, Minn., and other relatives.

His wife died in 2002. Three brothers and two sisters also died earlier.

Contributions to the family may be made in care of Loveland Funeral Chapel, 1508 Fourth St.

Margaret Henry

Pasco, Wash.

1901-2003

Margaret Lorenda Henry, 100, of Pasco died Dec. 2, 2001. A memorial service was held June 28 at the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Milton-Freewater. Munselle-Rhodes Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Henry was born Nov. 11, 1901, to Wilford and Carrie Harrington Schneider. She attended school in Idaho, and moved to the Milton-Freewater area where she married Bazil Vance Hudson on July 20, 1919. After his death she moved to Pendleton where she worked as a nurse’s aide at the Eastern Oregon State Hospital. She married Osmond Henry and the couple moved to the coast for a few years. After his death she moved to Pasco where she lived with her son, and often spent time with her daughter in La Grande.

She was a member of the United Agency for the Blind in the Tri-Cities.

Survivors include her daughter-in-law, Verna Hudson of Pasco; 12 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; several great-great-grandchildren and other relatives. Two sons, a daughter, two brothers and two sisters all died earlier.

Donna Trindle

North Powder

1946-2003

Donna Jean Trindle, 57, of North Powder died June 26 at her home. Cause of death has not been determined. A memorial service was held Tuesday at the Haines United Methodist Church. Gray’s West and Co. was in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Trindle was born Jan. 26, 1946, to Orville and Mildred Miles Jenkins in Oroville, Calif. She attended Humboldt University and Cerrocosa Community College where she earned an associate degree in English. She was employed at St. Elizabeth Health Services for over 20 years. Donna was a member of the Literary Council in California, Americorp and V.I.S.T.A.

Survivors include her children, Jake and Ben Trindle, and four grandchildren.

Memorials may be made to the Baker County Library or the Haines United Methodist Church Garden Fund in care of Gray’s West & Company Pioneer Chapel, P.O. Box 726, Baker City 97814.

Beverly Launer

Formerly of La Grande

1929-2003

Beverly Verl Launer, 73, of Reno and formerly of La Grande died June 5 at her home. A celebration of life will be held at the Veterans Cemetery in Fernly, Nev., July 22.

Walton’s Funeral Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Launer was born July 22, 1929, to Thomas and Verl LaMont in La Habra, Calif. She married James Glenn Launer and moved to Oregon in 1965. She lived in La Grande and Heppner until 1986 where she worked as a dispatcher for the Morrow County Sheriff’s office and for the La Grande Police Department.

Survivors include children, Sue Birrell and Mark Launer II, both of Reno, Donna Gage of Hermiston, Thomas Launer of Lincoln, Neb., and James Launer Jr. of Central, Ariz.; two stepchildren, Debra Hall of Glenn Heights, Texas, and Russell Launer of Orinda, Calif.; 14 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren and two sisters, Marcia Carlson and Barbara Roizen, both of California.

Roy Baxter

Formerly of Union

1914-2003

Roy John Baxter, 89, of South Everett, Wash., and formerly of Union died June 11. Burial was at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park. Solie Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Baxter was born May 31, 1914, to William B. and Susie Briggs Baxter in Telocaset. He graduated from Union High School in 1932 and served in the Army during World War II. He was wounded in 1944 in New Guinea and returned to the U.S. in December. He received the Purple Heart.

He married Doris Peterson on Dec. 28, 1944, in Baker City. He graduated from the Kansas City School of Watch Making and Jewelry Repair, and worked as a jeweler until he retired in 1977. He was a member of the South Everett Lions Club and participated in many youth programs while his children were young.

Survivors include his wife of South Everett; children and their spouses, William and Cherri Baxter, Jan and Larry Popejoy, and John and Kathy Baxter; and two grandchildren. Two brothers, Earl and Lawrence Baxter, and a sister, Fern Erwin, all died earlier.

Memorials may be made to Hospice of Snohomish County, 2731 Wetmore, Suite 500, Everett 98201.

Burr Courtright

Island City

1928-2003

Burr Courtright, 74, of Island City died June 30 at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend after a short illness. A funeral will begin at 2 p.m. Monday at the United Methodist Church, 1612 Fourth St., with the Rev. Janet Farrell officiating. Burial will be at the Island City Cemetery. Viewing will be from 9 a.m. to noon at Loveland Funeral Chapel, 1508 Fourth St.

Mr. Courtright was born Sept. 26, 1928, one of triplets born to Gilbert G. and Grace Allen Courtright in Union. It’s thought that he was a member of one of the first sets of triplets born in Union County. He graduated from Union High School in 1946 and from Oregon State University with a degree in agronomy in 1950.

He married Mary Christine Domaschofsky Oct. 1, 1950, at Junction City. The couple settled on a farm near Hot Lake, and in 1960 he started Courtright Irrigation. He was an inventor and held 13 patents.

He was a member of the United Methodist Church, the Knife and Fork Club and Toastmasters. He enjoyed reading, especially western novels, traveling, telling stories, piloting his Cessna 172 and spending time with his family.

Survivors include his wife of Island City; children, Steven Courtright of La Grande, Kathy Courtright of Pendleton, Sandra Sanders of Salem and Rod Courtright of Bend; six grandchildren; three sisters, Phyllis Purvine of Portland, Betty Graham of La Grande and Ruth Holznagel of Forest Grove; and other relatives.

A brother, Allen, and a sister, Bernice, died earlier.

Memorials may be made to the United Methodist Foundation in care of Loveland Chapel.

Georgette Beeson

Portland

1945-2003

Georgette Ann Beeson, 58, of Portland died June 30 of natural causes. A funeral service will begin at 1 p.m. Monday at New Hope Community Church. A graveside service will begin at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Island City Cemetery. Sunnyside Little Chapel of the Chimes is in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Beeson was born Georgette Ann Bleth on May 25, 1945, in Vancouver, Wash. She worked for United Airlines as a stewardess from 1965 to 1973 and volunteered in Laos at the Dooly Foundation Medical Center. She graduated from Portland State University in 1978 and married Marvin Beeson on Feb. 14, 1985. She was a social worker at the Milwaukie Senior Center and the Clackamas County Social Services Division. She retired in 2000 and volunteered for Portland Parks and Recreation, Metro Parks and Greenspaces, the American Wildlife Society, the Nature Conservancy and the Milwaukie Kiwanis. She enjoyed traveling, birding, nature hikes and wildlife preservation.

Survivors include her husband of Portland; her mother, June Bleth of Sandy; a stepdaughter, Julie Cedillos of New York, N.Y.; one grandchild; two brothers and their wives, Roger and Katherine Bleth of Seward, Alaska, and Tom and Doris Bleth of Sandy, and other relatives.

Memorials may be made to the Mount Hood Kiwanis Camp or the American Wildlife Foundation.

Rita Reavis

Formerly

of Wallowa County

1907-2003

Former Milton-Freewater resident and longtime Wallowa County resident Rita Reavis, 96, died July 1 in College Place, Wash.

Private family services will be held. Munselle-Rhodes Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Reavis was born March 4, 1907, in Wallowa County, the youngest child of five boys and two girls born to Wallowa County pioneers, William Perry and Lucy Angeline Shields Warnock. The family lived on the ranch on the Imnaha until her parents built a home in Enterprise. They lived there during the school year.

She graduated from Enterprise High School and the University of Oregon. She was a music major and with her sister, Nina, studied in New York City. Nina played the violin and Rita, the piano.

After returning to Wallowa County in the early 1930s, she married Ernest Collinsworth in the spring of 1934. They made their home on a ranch five miles east of Joseph. Mr. and Mrs. Collinsworth had a daughter, Charlotte.

Mr. Collinsworth was killed in a haying accident a few years after their marriage. Rita and her daughter lived in California for a time with her sister and later returned to Enterprise, where she worked at the clerk’s office.

She married Herbert Reavis, and they lived in various locations until making their home on the ranch once again. After retirement, they lived at their cabin at Wallowa Lake and later on the Imnaha.

Her husband died earlier.

She moved to Milton-Freewater in 1984 to be near her family.

She enjoyed hunting, fly fishing, photography and working in her yard. She was a longtime member of the Eastern Star and also the Legion Auxiliary of Joseph.

Mrs. Reavis is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Charlotte and Ron Parsons of Milton-Freewater, seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

Her brothers, Elmer, Perry, Earl, Jesse and Vern Warnock and her sister, Nina Klove, died earlier.