Obituaries - Jan. 27, 2011

John Lucian Burns

Graveside services for John Lucian Burns, 88, Pullman, will be Saturday, Jan. 29, 2011, at 1 p.m. at the Pomeroy Cemetery followed by a 2 p.m. memorial reception at the Pataha Flour Mill in Pomeroy. Mr. Burns died Jan. 13, 2011. He has been cremated.

Born in Pomeroy to Oscar and Ida Burns July 4, 1922, he graduated from Pomeroy High School with the class of 1940. He attended Washington State College for two years and married Marjorie Polly, from Dayton, May 4, 1943.

He entered the US Army and from January 1944 to the end of World War II served in the 32nd (Red Arrow) Infantry Division in the South Pacific and fought in major campaigns in New Guinea and the Philippines and eventually served in the occupation forces in Japan. In June 1945 he was awarded a direct field commission from Staff Sergeant to 2nd Lieutenant. Infantry. He arrived home (Pomeroy) from WWII on Christmas eve, 1945, and was discharged in January 1946. Awards and citations he received included the Purple Heart, Bronze Star with oak leaf cluster, combat infantryman badge and WWII victory medal

On June 16, 1946, he married Marjorie Polly in Dayton, and they moved to Pomeroy where they farmed and raised livestock. In 1954, he was named Garfield County Conservation Farmer of the Year. The family moved to Viola, Idaho, in 1968. He farmed and also worked three years as a deputy assessor for Latah County, followed by three years as a field man for the Idaho Farm Bureau. They moved to Pullman in 1980. He continued farming and retired in the early 1990s. Since January 2008 he has resided at Avalon Care Center in Pullman after being stricken by a stroke.

Mr. Burns was very active in the Republican Party and served in many party offices. He was also a 50-year member of Evening Star Lodge and a member of El Katif Shrine since 1954. He was a member of the Simpson United Methodist Church in Pullman.

Mrs. Burns died in 2008.

Surviving are two sons; John (Elaine) Colfax; Scott (April), Lynnwood; three daughters, Dianna (Frank) Cullinan of Twin Falls, Idaho; Marilee (Stuart) Luttrell of Richland and Polly (Arch) Henderson of Cavendish, Idaho; two sisters: Martha McGough, Moses Lake and Florence Fitzsimmons, Davenport; 18 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.

He was also preceded in death by a granddaughter, Rhalne Amelia Burns of Lynnwood.

His family suggests that memorials go to American Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Institute, Sunnyside Ave, North, Suite 348, Seattle, 98103, or the Shiners’ Children’s Hospital or Avalon Care Center, 1310 NW Deane St., Pullman, 99163.

Doris Kahler

An afternoon graveside service for Doris Kahler, 87, retired LaCrosse banker, was Saturday, Jan. 22, at Emanuel Lutheran Cemetery in Ritzville. She died at her home in LaCrosse Jan. 16, 2011.

Born in 1923 at Ritzville to Hans and Anna Kahler, she moved with her family to Hooper in 1929 and attended grade school in Hooper. She graduated from LaCrosse High School with the class of 1941 and attended Washington State College. She retired in 1993 after a 42-year career in banking. She was manager of Sea-First Bank in La Crosse at the time she retired.

An avid bowler, she competed on various teams at Colfax for 45 years. Surviving are five nieces, Rhonda Mager, Diane Bippes, Nancy Kahler, all of Spokane; Katherine Stevenson of Monroe and Elizabeth Jones of Yakima and three nephews, Scott and Thomas Kahler of Spokane and David Freeburg of Sunnyside.

Memorial contributions are suggested to Emanuel Lutheran Church in Ritzville or Dollars for Scholars, Box 258, LaCrosse, 99143.

Trena Leinweber

Trena Geneva Leinweber, 63, former Garfield resident, died Jan. 15, 2011. A private service will be conducted at a later date.

Born March 25, 1947, in Ogden, Utah, to Parley and Uvada Murdock, she married Daniel Leinweber, Jr., in Garfield, Dec. 7, 1963. They lived many years in Garfield before moving to Moses Lake.

She is survived by her husband, Daniel, three children, Carrie (Doc) Halliday of Houston; RaNae (Ike) Blackledge of Ephrata; Daniel Gene (Christene) of Moses Lake; one brother, Dennis Murdock, Portland, Ore .; two granddaughters and eight grandsons. She was preceded in death by her daughter, Melissa.

" width="72" height="141" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-23123" />Richard Mackey

A memorial service for Richard (Dick) Mackey, 65, retired agronomist and resident of Princeton, will be Friday, Jan. 28, at 11 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Potlatch. A potluck dinner will be served following the service.

He died late Saturday evening, Jan. 22, 2011, at Pullman Regional Hospital after a courageous 11 year battle against leukemia.

Richard was born on Aug. 11, 1945 at Madera, Calif., to Roy and Ann Fischer Mackey. He graduated from Madera High School in 1963. He attended Fresno City College and later graduated from Fresno State University with a bachelor’s degree in agronomy. He married Anita Parisi on April 16, 1966, in Fresno, Calif.

Richard and Anita moved to Moses Lake where he was employed by Stauffer Chemical.

The couple later moved to the Potlatch area where he was employed by Palouse Producers as an agronomist.

In the 80’s he started R & A Ag Sales, Inc., and during this time he also earned a real estate license and worked with A-Bob Reality. Due to health reasons he retired in 2000.

He was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Potlatch.

Survivors include his wife of 44 years, Anita Mackey, Princeton; three daughters, Kimberly (Bret) Raddeman, Lannon, Wis .; Shannon Colbert, Eagle, Idaho; Carrie Mackey, Reno; one brother, Mark Mackey, North Fork, Calif .; three sisters, Francine German, Fresno, Calif .; Patty Coulter, Clovis, Calif. and Carolyn DeLucia, St. Petersburg, Fla. and three grandchildren.

Memorials may be given to Bear Schultz, 1161 Gold Hill Rd. Princeton, ID 83857. In regards to the Hunter Safety Program, or to the Potlatch Ambulance Fund, Box 63 Potlatch, ID 83855.

Elsie M. Merrill

A memorial service for Elsie M. Merrill, 96, will be today, Thursday, Jan.27, 2011, at 11 a.m. at Kramer Funeral Home, Palouse, with the Rev. Gordon Braun officiating. A luncheon will follow the service at the Palouse River Community Center in Princeton, Idaho. Cremation will precede the service and her ashes will be buried in the Greenwood Cemetery at a later date.

She died Monday, Jan. 24, 2011.

Born Dec. 27, 1914, at Hilger, Mont., to Clifford and Mary Lesiak Becraft, she attended school in Montana and graduated from Fergus County High School in 1933.

She married Gardner Merrill July 25, 1934, at Lewistown, Mont., and the couple worked on a farm in the area for one year. They moved to Princeton where they purchased a small farm. They raised oats and alfalfa and operated a dairy farm for about five years in the 1950’s

She was a gold sheaf member of the Princeton Grange, and Princeton Extension Club for the University of Idaho. She enjoyed sewing and gardening.

Mr. Merrill died in 2001.

Survivors include one son, Jerry Merrill, Willow, Alaska; three daughters, Nancy (Harold) Thompson, Princeton; Susan (Ralph) Renes, Fairbanks, Alaska; Marlene (John) Smalldridge, Princeton; 10 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren.

Memorials may be given to the Palouse River Community Center at Princeton, or to the Potlatch Ambulance Fund, Box 63, Potlatch, ID 83843.