Wednesday, July 3, 2019 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Obituaries
When Central Oregon
was ‘Moon Country’
Ronald Earl Bliven
September 4, 1939 — June 19, 2019
Ron Bliven was born in
Cherokee, Iowa, to Earl and
Jeanette Bliven. He had two
brothers and one sister.
Ron married his high
school, baton-twirling,
sweetheart, Terry, in 1960 in
Riddle, Oregon. He worked
in the meat industry. Ron and
Terry lived all over Oregon.
They settled in Sisters in
1992 after raising two chil-
dren: Brenda (Tim Gross)
and Brad (Irene) Bliven. Ron
was the proud grandfather of
Matt, Katey, Jared, Desirae,
Justin and Jenna; and he had
six great-grandchildren.
Ron loved hunting and
fishing. His hobby and <sec-
ond job= was square-dance
caller. In lieu of flowers,
please donate to your favor-
ite children9s organization.
Private family services at a
later date.
Gene Austin Warf
October 6, 1927 — June 18, 2019
Our beloved father,
Gene, passed away June 18,
2019, in a loving hospice
facility, in Tucson, Arizona.
His daughters and son-in-
law rotated days by his side
for his final nine days. He
had been suffering with a
failing heart condition, and
had chosen to have correc-
tive surgery. Complications
from the surgery caused his
death.
Gene was 91 years
young. He was born in
Wewoca, Oklahoma, to
Oscar and Nelle Warf.
He had one brother,
Boyd, and two sisters,
Diene and Louise (who all
predeceased him). The Warf
family moved a lot 4 from
Oklahoma to California. It
was in San Jose, California,
that Gene, at 17, met the
love of his life 4 Beverly
Joyce Tosello.
Gene enlisted in the
Marine Corps in 1946, as
World War II was wind-
ing down. Lucky for us, he
developed pneumonia, and
was forced to remain state-
side as a company clerk. He
was honorably discharged in
1947, to return to California
and his Beverly. (We often
laughed about the story
that Gene9s shoulders had
grown so big, Beverly9s
family joked he wouldn9t
fit through the door!) Gene
and Beverly were married
June 20, 1948, in San Jose,
California.
Work was scarce after
the war, but Gene found
an entry-level job at IMC,
where he had a 35-year
career.
He always shared that he
was a terrified young man
4 taking on the respon-
sibility of a wife and chil-
dren soon to follow. His
first daughter, Nancy Jean,
was born March 25, 1949.
Patricia Lynn was born
March 25, 1950 (on Nancy9s
first birthday!) From that
day forward, Gene totally
focused his life on caring for
25
and financially supporting
his precious <girls.=
He loved working num-
bers (accounting) and rarely
missed work in his career.
He worked his way up to
a division manager with
IMC and was transferred to
Skokie, Illinois for a couple
years, then back to San Jose.
After retiring from IMC,
Gene and Beverly moved
to Sisters in 1980 to be
near their only grandchild,
Jennifer Michele Brown.
Jennifer9s <Papa= would
spend hours with her, play-
ing <waitress,= bank teller,
and school. He often got
a <make-over,= too! Gene
and Beverly adored their
precious Jennifer. They
loved to RV, and often
took her along. Both Gene
and Beverly decided they
weren9t ready to be totally
retired, so they tried a hand
at real estate sales with
Reed Brothers Realty. Both
really enjoyed those years
and the interesting people
they met.
Finally, they both decided
to retire and purchase a sec-
ond home in Boulder City,
Nevada. The two enjoyed
the wonderful winter
weather in their later years.
They truly adored each other
their entire married life (it
was like Camelot). After
64 years, Gene sadly lost
Beverly in February 2013.
As Alzheimer9s ravaged
her mind and body, Gene
NEVER left her side. He
was her caregiver until the
very end. Never has a love
been truer&
After Beverly died, Gene
sold his acreage in Sisters
and moved to Arizona to be
near Nancy and Patricia (and
Patricia9s husband, Patrick,
who loved Gene as a father).
He pined for his Beverly
every day. Gene lived in
Florence, Arizona, for a
couple years, then moved to
a lovely retirement village in
Tucson to be nearer Pat and
Patti. As his health declined,
he was in need of more and
more assistance. But he
remained positive (at 90,
he had a 10-year plan!), and
just as fiercely dedicated to
his remaining family.
He will be greatly missed
by all who really knew him.
He was a quiet, gentle man.
Quick to smile. Generous to
a fault. There are many peo-
ple who received the bene-
fits of his selfless generosity.
He is survived by his
daughter Nancy Blake (Bob
Gerhard), daughter Patricia
Brown (Patrick); grand-
daughter Jennifer Brown
Mainero; Beverly9s brother,
George Tosello (Gayle);
nephews and nieces from
both sides of the family,
especially our dear Tosello9s:
Carey, Garth, Chris, (all in
Sisters) and Greg; and their
beautiful families; Byron
Blake, Jeff and Anne Blake,
and his step-great-grand-
children: Tyler, Justin, and
Haley Blake who he abso-
lutely adored. What a bless-
ing they were to him in his
later years. And of course,
his beloved mini-dachshund,
Bella.
Gene will be laid to rest
alongside his beautiful bride,
Beverly, in Greenwood
Cemetery, Bend (private-
family). TOGETHER
FOREVER NOW 4 IN
HEAVEN.
We will really miss you,
Dad. You started as a gentle
ripple in this pond of life&
but the ripple grew and
spread, and you touched so
many.
More than 50 years ago,
as the space race between
the United States and Soviet
Union reached a fever pitch,
Central Oregon played an
important yet little-known
role in preparing U.S. astro-
nauts for lunar landscapes.
Moon Country: Oregon and
the Space Race, an origi-
nal exhibit celebrating this
region9s involvement in the
first lunar landing, opens at
the High Desert Museum on
Saturday, July 6.
The National Aeronautics
and Space Administration
(NASA) was established
in 1958 and, in a race for
supremacy with the Soviet
Union, set its sights on being
the first to put astronauts on
the moon. NASA theorized
that Central Oregon9s volca-
nic terrain resembled that of
the moon, creating an ideal
place for geologists to train
astronauts and test equip-
ment. The Apollo program
trained in Central Oregon in
1964 and in 1966. This year
marks the 50th anniversary of
the first lunar landing 4 on
July 20, 1969, commander
Neil Armstrong and lunar
module pilot Buzz Aldrin
landed the Apollo Lunar
Module Eagle on the moon.
Moon Country: Oregon
and the Space Race features
stories and rarely seen photo-
graphs from this time period
in locations well known to
Oregonians, from McKenzie
Pass to Paulina Lake. As a
backdrop, the exhibit also
discusses the turmoil divid-
ing the country during that
decade, including the civil
rights movement and the
country9s involvement in
the Vietnam War. Somewhat
isolated during those years,
Central Oregon was expe-
riencing its own evolution:
The timber industry was
shrinking, and some were
envisioning future tour-
ism with the establishment
of Mt. Bachelor as a ski
resort.
From the exhibition, visi-
tors will learn that there is a
small piece of lava rock on the
moon that came from Devils
Lake, beside the Cascade
Lakes Highway roughly 30
miles west of Bend. In 1971,
astronaut James Irwin placed
the rock on the moon dur-
ing his Apollo 15 mission to
commemorate his geological
training in Central Oregon
years before.
Like many astronauts dur-
ing those years, Irwin com-
pleted some of his training
at sites throughout Central
Oregon such as Newberry
Crater, Lava Butte, Fort Rock
and Hole-in-the-Ground. The
training offered astronauts
a chance to learn about ter-
rain they might encounter on
the moon and improve their
skills navigating challenging
landscapes.
It also earned Central
Oregon the nickname <Moon
Country.=
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