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Columbia Gorge News
Wednesday,September2,2020
7
OBITUARIES
PA I D N O T I C E S
On her last birthday, Darla’s children and grandchildren
got together to celebrate her birthday. She appeared to be the
Larry Neal Ward was born in Hanford,
picture of health, and was thrilled to be able to take a long
Calif., to Letha Barnett Ward and Cletus Ward motorcycle ride with her son on the back of his motorcycle.
on June 28, 1946. While growing up, he lived
Even though she did not have much notice, she was at
and traveled all over the United States.
peace with dying and was ready to be reunited with her
Larry is survived by his wife Linda; daugh- parents, brother and husband. Those of you who knew Darla
ter Lori Sandoz and husband Josh Sandoz;
well will not be surprised that she shared some tips for her
son Richard Ward; brothers Leon and wife
obituary before she died.
Carrol Ward, Jerry and wife Pat Ward; and
Darla passed away on Aug. 12, 2020, and was buried in the
stepdaughters Sandra England, Leslie
Underwood Chris-Zada Cemetery, the same place where she
Larry Ward
Seaborn, and Brenda Svoboda. Larry has 13
often donated her time to clean up and decorate graves.
grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
She is survived by her son and daughter-in law, Jay and
Larry worked at Lockheed Martin, Aluminum Plant, Norris Laurie Johnston; her daughter and son-in-law, Shawna and
Industries, and retired from The Dalles Dam. Larry was a
Mike Caldwell; her sisters Janice Roberts and Neola Mace;
Veteran who served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam war grandchildren Wesley Johnston, Sophie Caldwell, Derrick
from 1965-1967.
Johnston, Griffin Caldwell and Taryn Johnston; her niece
Larry and wife Linda loved to fish and hunt, and in the later Tannya Roberts; and nephews Aaron and Ryan Roberts.
years, just went along to hunting camp to cook and visit. Larry
was a family man, an amazing metal fabricator and mechan-
Georgia Smith
ic, loved to practice bow shooting and work on his fishing
equipment.
Georgia M. Smith passed away peacefully
Larry peacefully passed into the loving arms of the Lord on
at The Springs at Mill Creek in The Dalles,
Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, with his wife Linda and daughter
Ore. She was 84.
Lori by his side.
Georgia was born July 29, 1936, to par-
A celebration of life has yet to be determined due to
ents Britani and Georgianna Bodwin in
COVID-19.
Beaumont, Texas. She had five siblings,
Richard, John, Joe, Earl and Letha May.
Darla Johnston
Georgia graduated from Charleston Pollard
Darla Jean Johnston was born on July 5,
Georgia Smith High in Beaumont in 1955. She met Clifton
1945, in Phoenix, Ariz., to Daniel Ray and
Smith and they married April 23, 1957.
Mineola Mace. Her older brother, Ronald
Shortly after getting married, Cliff and Georgia moved
Ray Mace, passed away when he was only 13 to The Dalles and started their lives together, raising four
years old and Darla was 8 years old. She then children.
became the bossy oldest sibling to her two
She worked at The Dalles General Hospital in the early
sisters, Janice Marie Roberts and Neola Lee
years. In 1983, Cliff and Georgia opened their first dealership,
Mace.
Cliff Smith Motors, in Hood River. They later added to their
When she was 20 years old, Darla married business in 1986.
Darla
Raymond Wesley Johnston in Phoenix. Ray
Johnston
Georgia enjoyed her family and friends, bowling, sewing,
and Darla moved to Forks, Wash., for a few
sports, going to church and attending her children’s sporting
years, and then moved to the Underwood, Wash., area where events. Georgia attended St. Peter’s Catholic Church for many
they raised their son, Jay Wesley Johnston, and daughter,
years, where she introduced her family to the Lord.
Shawna Dee Johnston. Ray and Darla lived the rest of their
Georgia was preceded in death by her parents, hus-
lives in Underwood, with Ray passing away in 2006.
band Cliff, and siblings Richard, Joe and Earl Bodwin. She
They both loved being part of the Underwood community, is survived by her daughter, Stacey Howell, and sons Joe,
making life-long friends with the Sooters, Zieglers, Murrays,
Todd and Jeff. She also has seven grandchildren and two
Yarnells and many other families.
great-grandchildren.
They built their own house, working nights and weekends,
Special thanks to the staff at The Springs at Mill Creek facili-
while both were working full-time jobs. They often read books ty. They provided love and care to her every day.
to learn about construction, particularly to learn about the
The family had a private memorial on May 22 at St. Peter’s
plumbing and electrical work.
Cemetery.
Darla loved playing pranks on people — like when her
In loving memory of a special lady. You are loved forever
parents came to visit her and Ray in Forks, they dressed up to and missed dearly!
greet her parents as if they had decided to become hippies,
complete with long hair, floppy hats, bell-bottoms, sandals
Anthony Sarsfield
and love beads.
Darla was never afraid to speak up for what she felt was
Anthony William Sarsfield was born in The
right. She devoted her life to service to God and her family.
Dalles, Ore., on Jan. 25, 1933, to Christine
Darla was a member of many congregations and served in
(Riddell) and Frank Sarsfield. He grew up in
many capacities, including teaching Sunday School, and
Centerville, Wash., where he lived most all of
managing a Vacation Bible School program for several years
his life. He transferred for seventh grade to St.
at Grace Baptist.
Mary’s Academy in The Dalles when his fam-
She loved her family unreservedly, and enjoyed taking care
ily moved to The Dalles. He graduated salu-
of her grandchildren whenever she had the opportunity. She
tatorian from The Dalles high school in 1952.
unselfishly did end-of-life caregiving for her mother-in-law,
After high school, he was recommended to
Anthony
her father, her husband and her mother.
Annapolis, but chose to attend the University
Sarsfield
One of Darla’s first jobs was working at the Phoenix news-
of Oregon, in Eugene, joining Delta Omega
paper the Arizona Republic and Gazette, where she met her
fraternity, and playing baseball. After his freshman year at U
future husband, Ray Johnston. She attained dual Bachelor
of O, he transferred to University of Portland, where he played
of Science degrees at Arizona State University in chemistry
basketball on the varsity team. He graduated from University
and biology, and started working as a medical technologist in of Portland in 1956 with a degree in accounting.
Phoenix.
While in college, Anthony met Marilyn Winslow when they
She also worked as a med tech in Aberdeen, Wash., and
were in the same English class and the couple wed on Aug.
finished her med tech career working at Skyline hospital in
11, 1956. They lived on the family farm and were married for
White Salmon, Wash., for many years.
56 years until Marilyn’s death in 2012.
Darla always enjoyed teaching, beginning her teaching
Anthony raised beef cattle and grew and sold alfalfa and
career in Phoenix teaching classes to other medical tech-
winter wheat on the family homestead as was family tradition.
nologists. Later in life, she returned to school to obtain her
He retired from the farm work at 82 years of age, saying he
teaching credential and then worked as a school teacher for
was tired of feeding cows in the winter. Anthony was a volun-
junior high and high school. She taught many subjects in that teer elected official school board member at the Centerville
role, from chemistry to the alternative school and to welding. Elementary School for 36 years. He was a volunteer fire fighter
Darla studied voice and accordion in her youth, playing
at the Centerville Fire District. He was owner/manager of the
the accordion often and later gave accordion lessons. She
Centerville Scale Cooperative for many years.
directed many church choirs and special musical programs,
He was known in the area by many for his love of the
and sang and played in many choir choirs. She also was a
game of basketball. He played for the Oasis Café Town Team,
member of a professional choir in Phoenix which performed beyond his 50 years of age. After Town Team basketball, he
in formal clothes and long gloves. They appeared with various continued his love for the game by sponsoring a recreational
celebrities, including Dick Van Dyke. She sang with Sweet
team in The Dalles called Sarsfield Cattle Company.
Adelines for many years. One of her favorite things was going
Anthony passed away in hospice care at the Goldendale
to her daughter’s restaurant in Hood River to listen to Moe
Hospital on Aug. 29, 2020, at the age of 87. He will be missed
Dixon perform on Wednesday nights.
by his daughter and son-in-law, Christine and Kevin Seed
Darla loved playing sports, and took every opportunity to
and grandson Patrick of Portland, and son and daughter-in-
play and to try something new, including some spontaneous law George and Silvia Sarsfield and grandchildren Tanner
midnight bowling when she lived in Phoenix. She played on
and Ashlan, partner Mitch, of Salem, Ore. He was preceded
a softball league for several years in Phoenix, and enjoyed
in death by wife Marilyn, brother Francis, sister Katherine,
fishing, camping, tennis and all water sports. In 2016, she was grandchildren Shaina Sarsfield and Paul Seed.
able to do stand-up-paddle boarding on her first attempt,
Please send condolences to the Sarsfield family by visiting
while her two younger sisters watched her from the riverbank www.gardnerfh.com.
after their failed attempts.
Darla enjoyed travel, including trips to visit family in Iowa,
Robert Brown
New Mexico, Arizona and California. She was able to go on
three cruises with her family to the Caribbean, Alaska and
Robert G. Brown, 86, a resident of The
Nova Scotia, and on two trips to Hawaii with her sisters. She
Dalles, Ore., passed away at his home on
also took a trip to New York City to watch the ball drop one
May 9, 2020, in the loving arms of his family.
New Year’s Eve.
He was born in 1933, the third child to Dr.
She did many small acts of kindness, including paying
Albert and Helen Brown. He graduated from
a neighbor’s electric bill when they couldn’t afford it. She
the University of Nebraska in Omaha with
chaired and participated in innumerable fundraising events
Business Administration and Engineering
for good causes over the years. She loved being part of
Degrees.
non-profit organizations in the Underwood area, serving on
Robert, known as Bob, married Annabelle
Robert Brown
the CEKC-UCC Board of Directors and was the vice president
Nelson in Boone, Iowa in 1956. Their union
of the Underwood Community Council. She was one of the
lasted 60 loving years with six children.
founding members of the Underwood Community Gardens.
Bob served his country in the U.S. Army from 1953-1961.
She worked very hard on preserving the Community Center
and the Underwood Park. One of the last items on her list was
trying to help save the Stevenson pool.
She loved participating in the Underwood Book Club and
often talked about the great women she got to know and the
interesting books she was exposed to that she never would
have read otherwise.
Larry Ward
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He was assigned to the 7811 Army Unit, and was stationed in
Schweinfurt, Germany, during the Korean War.
Bob worked as a superintendent and engineer with Peter
Kiewit & Sons in the states of Nebraska, South Dakota, North
Dakota, Montana, Washington, and Oregon before taking a
job with Tenneson Engineering as a civil engineer. Bob went
on to become the elected Sheriff of Wasco County, serving
from 1981-1985. After serving Wasco County, Bob went on
to form his own construction business, working alongside
his son Robert. He worked construction until becoming the
engineer for the City of The Dalles. In retirement, he started a
snow removal business in Burns, Oregon working alongside
his son Michael.
Bob loved to spend time with his family and friends. He
was an avid hunter, fisherman, bird watcher, and reader. Bob
was a pilot, owning several airplanes during his lifetime. In
his younger days, he loved to scuba dive and compete in com-
petitive waterskiing events. He thoroughly enjoyed his deep-
sea fishing trips at the Oregon Coast. Bob was a very caring
and loving husband, father, and friend. There was nothing
that Bob would not do for his family, friends, and neighbors.
Bob was a member of the Elks Lodge No. 303 for more than
50 years. He was the Exalted Ruler on two separate occasions,
and served as a Trustee for many years.
Bob is survived by his children, Christine Borg (Karl),
Hillsboro, Robert (Bob) F. Brown (Dorene), The Dalles, Kathy
McBride (Dave), The Dalles, Kim Snyder (Joe), Condon, and
Deanne Witter (Duane), The Dalles; sister Peggy Doughty,
Pinckneyville, Ill.; 20 grandchildren, 37 great-grandchildren
and one great-great-grandchild; and numerous nieces and
nephews. He also leaves behind many other relatives and
good friends. Bob was preceded in death by his parents,
brother, wife, son, granddaughter, and great granddaughter.
Recitation of the Holy Rosary will be said at 10:30 a.m. on
Sept. 15 at St. Peter Catholic Church, 1222 W. 10th St., The
Dalles. A Funeral Mass will follow at 11 a.m. Rite of Christian
burial will be a private ceremony held at the Willamette
National Cemetery in Portland, Ore.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Bob’s name to
St. Peter Catholic Church, P.O. Box 41, The Dalles, OR 97058,
or St. Vincent de Paul, P.O. Box 553, The Dalles. To leave con-
dolences and/or memories, please visit www.tributes.com.
Columbia Gorge
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