Beem, Hender, Crossland, Farmer, Payne, Sutphin

Gerald Patrick Beem, 64, of La Grande, died July 6 in Walla Walla. A recitation of the rosary will begin at 6 p.m. Friday at Loveland Funeral Chapel. A Mass of Christian burial will begin at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Our Lady of the Valley Catholic Church.

A full obituary will be available later.

Alfred Hender, 76, of Waitsburg, Wash., died July 6. A service will begin at 2 p.m. Thursday at Enterprise Cemetery.

Bollman Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Nellie E. Crossland, 99, of Union, died June 28 at a local care center. A memorial graveside service will begin at 11 a.m. Friday at the Union Cemetery.

Daniels-Knopp Funeral, Cremation and Life Celebration Center is in charge of arrangements.

Nellie was born Aug. 29, 1908, to James E. and Melissa McClellan in Darlington, Idaho. She had six sisters and four brothers.

Nellie, known also as Nell, and two of her brothers came to Union with their parents in 1921. She graduated from Union High School in May 1926 and married Reginald Wood the same year. They had two children, Shirley and Don. Reginald died in 1929 as a result of an injury.

Nell later married James “Dick” Robertson and they had a daughter, Nellie Mae. Dick was an Oregon State Trooper for many years and was stationed in La Grande and Pendleton.

After retiring, they moved to Union. Nell was employed at the Baker-Union Co-op Creamery from 1945 until 1957.

After leaving the creamery she was the Union city recorder until her retirement in 1971 and marriage to Lloyd Crossland. The couple spent years together traveling to various places and states to explore, hunt, fish and enjoy camping. Lloyd died in 1993.

The remainder of Nellie’s life was spent at home enjoying her family, friends and working in her yard, raising flowers and a garden.

Survivors include her daughter, Shirley Shanks of Union; son and daughter-in-law, Don and Diana Wood of Union; daughter and son-in-law, Nellie Mae and Darrel Wood of Union; seven grandchildren; many great- and great-great-grandchildren; and other relatives. A granddaughter and great-grandson preceded her in death.

In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorial contributions be made to the GRH Hospice.

Michael Bryce Farmer Sr., 69, of Wallowa, died of cancer June 16 at his home. A memorial service begins at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Lostine Presbyterian Church. Bollman Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Mike was born Dec. 25, 1938, the youngest of three boys to Robert Bruce and Melva Farmer of Kenmore, Wash., in Yakima, Wash. He was raised in Kenmore and graduated from Bothell High School in 1957.

He attended the University of Washington and graduated with a bachelor of arts in education in 1961.

Mike began working with handicapped people for the State of Washington at the Fir Crest Facility in the Seattle area. He then moved to Okanogan, Wash., where he taught the fourth grade for seven years. Mike worked with youth athletics, coached football in Okanogan and served as a basketball referee.

An avid skier, Mike started the school skiing program for children in Okanogan, raising funds and collecting equipment in order to give youth the opportunity to participate in the sport.

Mike was a volunteer firefighter and served on the volunteer fire department in Okanogan.

In 1969, Mike and his family moved to Walla Walla where he taught special education and fourth-grade students. He retired after 21 years. He continued to referee basketball.

Mike was an avid motorcyclist and rode competitively in English trials. He loved cars and his household frequently had more cars than drivers. He enjoyed antique cars and belonged to and was president of the Walla Walla Historical Auto Society.

Mike moved to Wallowa County in 2000 where he began working for Moffit Bros. Transportation driving school and tour buses.

Recently, Mike had found a new passion – transitioning from motorized to horse-drawn vehicles. For the past several years, Mike was actively engaged in training his horses to draw carriages.

Mike was recently elected as the precinct No. 7 committee person for the Democratic Party of Wallowa County. He was a member of the Lostine Presbyterian Church.

Mike was married to Connie Payne in 1963 and married Lenella Anne Hansen in 1987. Mike had three children.

Survivors include a brother, Robert Farmer; daughter, Cristen Miller and her husband, Kenneth, of East Wenatchee, Wash.; two grandchildren; brother-in-law, James Hansen; stepsons, Mark and Steve Burrows; stepdaughters and their spouses, Julianne Erban and Karen Darrington; and seven stepgrandchildren.

He was preceded in death by a brother, Richard Farmer; and sons, Michael Jr. and Timothy. He was also preceded in death by his granddaughter, Cassandra, this year.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Lostine Presbyterian Church Building Fund, Wallowa Hospice or the Humane Society in care of Bollman Funeral Home, 315 W. Main St., Enterprise 97828.

Jack H. Payne, 84, died July 2 at a local care center. The family has requested no services. Loveland Funeral Chapel and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.

Jack was born May 25, 1924, to Elza and Georgia (Scott) Payne in Denver. He was raised and educated in east central Campbell County. He left Wyoming in 1937 and moved to Chehalis, Wash., then to North Powder in 1939 and to La Grande in 1942.

Jack entered the military in May 1943 and served until November 1945. He worked in the sawmills and was a logger. He retired in 1985 after working at Looking Glass for a few years.

He was a member of the Rock Hounds and Arrow Heads, and enjoyed fishing and huckleberry picking. He married Marie Peacock in the late 1950s. They later divorced. He then married Florence Ansell in 1975 in Winnemucca, Nev. She died in 1991.

He is survived by his brothers, Frank S. Payne of Woodburn and Harry C. Payne of La Grande; sister, Jean Kern of La Grande; stepchildren Josephine Wise of California, James Wise of La Grande, Geri Hall of Cove, Judy Hughes of Boise and Mike Hughes of Boise; several step-grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife and parents.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Salvation Army of La Grande.

Rachel Ann Sutphin, 82, of Enterprise, died June 29 in Pendleton. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Bollman Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Rachel Ann was born Nov. 12, 1925, to J.E. and Anna Lenore Brace Tulley of Wallowa. After graduating from Wallowa High School, she worked at the Wallowa Creamery and attended Willamette University in Salem and Eastern Oregon College in La Grande.

In 1948, she married Clayton Sutphin of Wallowa. She worked for the U.S. Forest Service and was the secretary to the superintendent at Wallowa High School.

In 1960 she and her family moved to Enterprise. For 18 years Rachel Ann was a library assistant at Enterprise High School, a job that she particularly loved. She enjoyed getting to know young people and helping them with their research.

She also enjoyed singing and had a lovely soprano voice. In her youth she performed in school operettas and joined the Methodist Church choir in Wallowa. She was a member of the Wallowa County Chorus, often performed solos at events in the county and sang in the Enterprise Congregational Church choir for more than 40 years. After her retirement, she enjoyed taking tour trips, visiting her children and taking voice lessons.

She is survived by her husband of 60 years, Clayton Sutphin; sisters, Ruth Andrews of La Grande and Harriet Zollman of Medford; daughter, Christi and her husband, Robin, of Ellensburg, Wash.; son, Kevin, and his wife, Lori, of Pendleton; daughter, Reesa and her husband, John, of Naches, Wash.; and four grandchildren.

Rachel Ann was preceded in death by her parents; and her brother, Hollis Brace Tulley.

Memorial contributions may be made to Enterprise High School.