A Lemmon Obituary: Richard Mark Lemmon

San Angelo, TX, Library

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Obituary
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circaFriday 24 September 2012 Pendleton, OR, Pioneer Chapel Website
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    Richard Mark Lemmon was born August 26, 1926 in Baker, Oregon to Warren Mac Lemmon and Vera Virginia Schlaefer.
     Dick attended schools in Baker and graduated from Baker High School in 1944. Basketball was his favorite sport. He played on a team in 1943 that won second place in the State Basketball Tournament. He enjoyed spending summers at his Grandfather Lemmon's cabin on Granite Boulder Creek.
    Dick joined the Naval Aviation Cadet program in March 1944-near the end of World War II. He was discharged October 1945 at the end of the war.
    In the fall of 1945 he went to work for the U.S. Forest Service and worked for them seasonally while attending Oregon State College where he obtained a degree in Forestry, graduating in 1950. He worked at various places for the Forest Service - Blue Mtn. Ranger Station, Seneca, Unity, Portland and Pendleton spanning a career of 33 years. He served as District Ranger in two different districts - Unity and Pendleton and the Regional Office in Portland. He thoroughly enjoyed working for the Forest Service in the outdoors.
    Dick married Mona Jean Mitchell, September 1949 in the Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Mona Jean passed away and he married Dona Marie Jeffords September 1976 in the Logan Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints serving in many capacities - Scout Master, Sunday School Teacher, High Counselor, Bishop, Temple Worker and Stake Patriarch. Dick and Dona served a mission in Nigeria. Dick loved serving the Lord and his fellowman.
    In his retirement years he enjoyed traveling to visit family, picking huckleberries and spending time at Diana's cabin, cutting wood and being in the mountains. Dick was preceded in death by his wife, Mona Jean, his parents, brothers Boyd and Jack and a son-in-law Steve Frazier.
    He is survived by his wife, Dona; sons, Andrew (Cathy), Scott (Kathy), Kevin, John (Melinda); daughters, Rhonda Gardner (Gil), Elaine Fresh (Stephen), Diana, Jolene Simpson (John); brother, John (Jeanette); 44 grandchildren, 44 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
    The family will greet friends at a viewing on Friday, September 28, 2012 from 7:00pm to 8:30pm at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, corner of 12th and Gilliam in Pendleton. Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 29, 2012 at 10:00am at the same location as the viewing.
    Memorial contributions may be made to the Humanitariam Program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, c/o Pendleton Pioneer Chapel, Folsom-Bishop, 131 SE Byers Ave., Pendleton, Oregon 97801. ....................................................................................................................
Source: http://www.pioneerchapel.com/obits/obituary.php?id=208498 ....................................................................................................................

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Links:

• My 23 Jun 2012 visit with Dick, Dona, & Diana; includes a photo of the three of them taken on or about Father's Day
• Dick's page on the Hugh Lemmon & Descendants website

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T 1 Oct Actual Route: Abilene Walmart - Mockingbird Ln Br Lib - Sweetwater McDs - Walmart

W 2 Oct Actual Route: Sweetwater Walmart - McDs - Big Spring VA Hosp - Howard County Lib - US87 bd

Th 3 Oct Actual Route: US87 bd - Sterling City, TX, - San Angelo Lib - 29th St Walmart

F 4 Oct Actual Route: 29th St Walmart - San Angelo VA Clinic - San Angelo Lib - Sherwood Way Walmart

Sa 5 Oct Actual Route: Sherwood Way Walmart - San Angelo Lib - Sherwood Way Walmart

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W 9 Oct Actual Route: Sherwood Way Walmart - Jim Noland State Farm Office - San Angelo Lib - Sherwood Way Walmart

Th 10 Oct Actual Route: Sherwood Way Walmart - San Angelo Lib - Sherwood Way Walmart

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Finding Campgrounds:

• RV Campgrounds from TrailerLifeDirectory.com
• Family Camping Directories from Woodalls.com
• Free campsites website
• Info on finding BLM Campgrounds

N.B. I receive nothing from Trailer Life, Woodalls, or FreeCampsites.net for including links to their free campground lookups.

Little Naches, Pasco, WA, Pendleton & La Grande, OR

Union Crk USFS CG, Phillips Reservoir, OR

    When I exited Mount Ranier National Park I stopped at the Little Naches Campground. While walking to the nearest outhouse I noticed something I don't recall seeing in 53 years of fishing & backpacking in the mountains of California: a carpenter's ant nest on the ground rather than in a downed tree.

    Zooming in, it appears some of the carpenter ants have reddish body parts. While I've thrown many of them out of my sleepings bags over the year, on awarm autumn night one wandered onto my eyelid while I was sleeping. When I opened my eye it trapped him in the folds -- and he clamped down with both jaws. After throwing him into the darkness followed by a few invectives, the lid he bit began to hurt almost immediately. Two applications of water didn't stop the pain; however, some Old Grandad did. [So, instead of calling it snake-bite medicine, call it proven ant-bite medicine. :-)>]

 

    A veiw down the Little Naches River at the WA410 bridge. A sign nearby warned visitors not to harrass the spawning chinook salmon.

 

 

 

 

 

    A look up the Columbia River at the seaport of Pasco and the girders of a bridge from Kennewick to Pasco from the edge of Sacajawea State Park.

 

 

 

 

    Turning left, here's a photo of the wind turbines which likely provide power of Richfield.
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    Driving from Walla Walla, Washington, into Oregon, I headed for Pendleton, where distant cousin Richard "Dick" Lemmon lives. [I call all cousins who are not 1st cousins distant cousins -- saves time.] Once there, we talked principally about our respective branches of the Lemmon family and were joined by Dick's daughter Diana as well as his wife Dona. Dona maintains an excellent genealogy scrapbook.
    They invited me to stay for dinner, which was excellent -- expecially the fresh strawberries, something I have eschewed for some time in order to pay for gas. After checking e-mail using my laptop at McDonalds, I spent the night behind the Pendleton Walmart.

    I thought the country near Pendleton was going to be like that near Pullman, WA, and Moscow, ID: wheat country. But, as Dick had told me, the Blue Mountains are south of Pendleton on the way to La Grande.
    This first shot looks from a Vista Point on the climb out of the Umatilla River back toward Pendleton and SE Washington. The dark green across he center of the photos is from the many trees planted by Pendleton residents as well as trees growing along the Umatilla.

 

 

    Panning left...we see wheat fields; in the foreground: blue lupins.

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Panning left again....

 

 

 

 

 

 

    A birds-eye view of a farmer or rancher who clearly has his own water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Near the town of Perry, the modern version of an earlier concrete span which bridged both the railroad and the Grande Ronde River.

 

 

 

 

 

    A plaque explaining the importance of US30 not only to NE Oregon but also to the Columbia River Gorge. [Click once to enlarge; pres ESC to return here.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Since it was raining I rolled down my window and took this photo of a plaque explaining "Historic La Grande." As you can see, the original town was on the Oregon. Now the larger town is near the primary Interstate (84) to Boise, Idaho's capitol and largest city.
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    Our next-door neighbor for 33 years on Van Ness Avenue in Santa Cruz, California, was Jeannette Wheatley Rowland, who grew up in La Grande and taught girls PE at the high school there after her graduation from the University of Oregon.
    Here's an obituary for her mother, Christina Purvis McLaren Wheatley and an article and death certificate extraction which outlines the death of her father, William Lawrence Wheatley. Both died accidental deaths.
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Christina Purvis McLaren WHEATLEY
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Obituary
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Monday 6 March 1933 La Grande Even Observer, Page One
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Fall Fatal To Mrs. Wheatley; Dies Saturday
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La Grande Woman of Advanced Years Will Be Buried Tomorrow After Service at 3:30 p.m.
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    Mrs. Christina Purvis Wheatley, of 2010 Adams avenue, who suffered serious injuries a week ago Sunday morning when she fell on her way to the Methodist Episcopal church, of which she was a member, died at the Grande Ronde hospital Saturday night. Death was caused by a broken pelvis and the shock. With her advanced years she was unable to rally.
    Funeral services will be held at the Snodgrass and Zimmerman mortuary Tuesday at 3:30 p.m., with Rev. W.H. Hertzog in charge. She will be buried in the family plot in the Masonic cemetery.
    Mrs. Wheatley was born in Glasgow, Scotland, March 12, 1858, and was 74 years, 11 months and 20 days of age. She had lived in La Grande for the last 28 years and had a host of friends in this locality. She is survived by her widowed husband, William L. Wheatley; the following children, Mrs. Elizabeth Harris, of Marshfield, Ore; Mrs. Jeanette Rowland, of Santa Cruz, Cal.; Scott Wheatley, of Ashland, Ore.; Mrs. Christiana Duncan and Mrs. Miriam Ott, of La Grande; the following brothers and sisters, Mrs. Frank Emerson, of Cleveland, O.; Arthur McLaren, of Victoria, B.C.; Alexander McLaren, of Hollywood, Cal.; Miss Grisell McLaren of Claremont, Cal., and other relatives.
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William Lawrence WHEATLEY
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Article
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Saturday 4 May 1940 Baker Democrat Herald, Page One
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La Grande Man Is Killed By Train
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    LA GRANDE, May 4--(AP)-- W.L. Wheatley's luck ran out the second time his car stalled on a Union Pacific grade crossing here.
    He was killed instantly as a passenger train struck the vehicle. Last fall his car stalled at the same crossing and was struck by a locomotive, but he escaped serious injury.
    Officers said he was hard of hearing. He was a resident of La Grande.
[Source #1]
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Abstract of Union County Death Certificate #49
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Place of Death: 4 mi east of LaGrande, Oregon (at RR crossing)
Date of Death: Abt 4:30 p.m. 3 May 1940
Cause: Hit by train while driving car crushing skull; poor vision on part of driver.
Burial: 7 May 1940, Masonic Cemetery, La Grande, Ore.
[Source #2]
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Sources:
1. Saturday 4 May 1940 Baker Democrat Herald, Page One
2. Union County Death Certificate #49 dated 7 May 1940
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Links:

• Wikipedia article on the Tri-Cities Area of Washington
• Wikipedia article on Pendleton, OR
• History of La Grande, OR
• Van Ness Neighbors pages for William L. and Christina Wheatley

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M 25 Jun Actual Route: Union CG - Sumpter - John Day - Grant County Fairgrounds RV Park

T 26 Jun Actual Route: Grant County Fairgrounds RV Park - John Day - Seneca - Idlewild USFS CG

W 27 Jun Route: Idlewild CG - Burns Lib - Burns P.O.

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Finding Campgrounds:

• RV Campgrounds from TrailerLifeDirectory.com
• Family Camping Directories from Woodalls.com
• Free campsites website
• Info on finding BLM Campgrounds

N.B. I receive nothing from Trailer Life, Woodalls, or FreeCampsites.net for including links to their free campground lookups.