Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 2017)
3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2017 William C. Elder Astoria May 24, 1918 — Oct. 30, 2017 World War II veteran and longtime Asto- Year’s Eve in Oregon City, where his sister, ria, Oregon, resident William C. “Bill” Elder Mildred, and her husband served as witnesses. passed away peacefully at home surrounded After their marriage and the USS Hunter by family on Monday, Oct. 30, 2017 at the Liggett’s return to the United States, Cath- age of 99. erine joined Bill in San Francisco, He was best known locally for and later San Diego. In early 1945, his many years as one of the man- they returned to Hammond, where agement personnel with Ocean Bill was again stationed at Point Foods of Astoria Inc. He made sev- Adams Coast Guard Station, where eral acquaintances of local fi sher- he remained until his honorable dis- men and fi sheries personnel up and charge on June 3, 1946, in Seattle. down the West Coast and in Alaska. Elder and his wife made their Elder was born at home on May permanent home in Astoria, where 24, 1918, in Portland, Oregon, to they raised their four children, Wil- John R. Elder of Omaha, Nebraska, liam R. Elder, twins Richard A. William Elder and Alice Fay (Hubbard) Elder of Elder and Donald D. Elder, and Mitchell, South Dakota. He had their daughter Sandra K. (Elder) two sisters, one older, Mildred (Elder) Brid- O’Kelley. Elder worked as a commercial fi sh- well, and her husband, Walter Bridwell, who erman in trawling and tuna operations, and both preceded him in death; and one younger served as secretary of the Otter Trawl Union. sister, Margaret (Elder) Woods, who survives. In March 1948 he was hired by Sebas- Her husband, Charles Woods, is deceased. tian Stuart Fish Co. in Astoria as offi ce man- He attended elementary school in Oak ager, but became more involved with oper- Grove, Oregon, and graduated from Mil- ations of the plant. In 1966, he was named waukie High School in 1936. After high assistant manager when Sebastian Stuart school, he attended business college, study- changed hands, and Ocean Foods of Astoria ing accounting/bookkeeping for one year at was formed. He retired after 40 years with the Oregon Institute of Technology, and for one company, and later was rehired on a retainer year at Multnomah Junior College. basis for seven years, overseeing several During that time he worked several differ- Ocean Beauty holdings along the West Coast ent jobs which include Oak Grove Drug Store, and in Alaska, and was also associated with Vern L. Wenger Radio & Appliance Store in the Oregon Trawl Commission for six years. Portland, as a lifeguard at Oswego Lake and Bill was involved in several civic and in Gladstone on the Clackamas River. From athletic activities. He played several years 1939 to 1941, he taught swimming and life- of fast-pitch softball with local teams, and saving courses for Clackamas County. while still in the Coast Guard at Hammond, On Jan. 2, 1942, he enlisted in the Coast he played both handball and racquetball at the Guard in Port Townsend, Washington, after YMCA, and later at Tongue Point after the Y the Dec. 7, 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor. closed. H e was a 43-year member of the Asto- During his time in the Coast Guard, he was ria Golf and Country Club, resigning just this fi rst stationed stateside at the Point Adams year; a 60-plus year member of the Astoria Coast Guard Station in Hammond, Ore- Elks Lodge BPOE No. 180; a longtime mem- gon. During his time at Point Adams, Elder ber of the Guadalcanal Campaign Veterans; received a Letter of Commendation from the a member of the Columbia River Maritime Coast Guard commander after swimming Museum; and, most recently, became the old- from the Coast Guard Lifeboat Triumph, with est member of the Clatsop Post 12 American the heaving line attached, through breakers, Legion . to a tuna boat stranded on Peacock Spit north Elder is survived by his son, William R. of the Columbia River. After attaching the and spouse, Marlene, and their children, Wil- line, they were able to tow the boat to safety. liam Jr., Rachel, Matthew, Leah, Daniel and In late September 1942, he met his soon- Aaron, as well as their spouses, signifi cant to-be wife, Catherine N. Erickson, at a USO others and grandchildren; son Richard A. and dance in Astoria; she preceded him in death in spouse, Patricia, and their children, Peter, 2012. Shortly after they met, Elder was noti- Scott and Sarah, as well as their spouses, sig- fi ed that he would be deployed to the South nifi cant others and grandchild; son Donald D. Pacifi c after the person who was supposed to and his children, Jason and spouse, Kim, and go broke his arm. He had only a day’s notice Jennifer; and daughter Sandra K. and spouse, to say his goodbyes, but vowed to keep in Shawn O’Kelley, and their children, John, touch with Catherine. Catherine, Nicole and Lindsay as well as their He was stationed on the USS Hunter Lig- spouses, signifi cant others and grandchildren; gett as the Navy mail clerk, with the rank of his wife’s sisters, Winifred Doran and Fran- boatswain’s mate second class. He joined the ces Crandall and spouse, George Crandall; Asiatic Pacifi c Campaign, South Pacifi c Area, and many nieces, nephews and friends. and Solomon Island Campaign, Guadalcanal Public viewing will be Friday, Nov. 3, through Bougainville, receiving two Bronze from 10 a.m. to noon, with funeral services at Stars for his efforts there by operating the 1 p.m., at Caldwell’s Luce-Layton Mortuary, landing barges that brought the troops from 1165 Franklin Ave., in Astoria, Oregon. Pri- the ship to the beach on Guadalcanal; then vate inter ment will follow immediately after back to the American Area Campaign, where the service. he received the World War II Victory Ribbon A public celebration of life will be held and Good Conduct Medal. later this month. Details will be posted in The During his time in the South Pacifi c, he Daily Astorian. continued to write to Catherine, and proposed In lieu of fl owers, memorial contributions to her in one of his letters. She accepted his can be made to the Columbia River Maritime proposal, so he sent money to his sister to Museum or a charity of your choice. purchase the engagement ring, and while on Please sign our online guest book at www. leave in December 1943, they eloped on New caldwellsmortuary.com County accepting applicants for tax panel The Daily Astorian Clatsop County residents can now apply to serve on the county Board of Property Tax Appeals next year. While the Board of Com- missioners appoints one per- son, three other positions are selected by the county clerk from a pool of applicants who do not hold public offi ce. County employees or employ- ees of other taxing districts in the county are not eligible. The appeals board consid- ers requests from residents to decrease their real market or assessed property values. It also can excuse penalties or late fi lings of property returns. The 2017-18 board will meet several times during the day in the early half of next year. Applications are due Nov. 27 by 5 p.m. Forms are avail- able at www.co.clatsop.or.us, the Clatsop County Manager’s Offi ce at 800 Exchange St. in Astoria or at 503-325-1000. Follow us on Facebook! www.facebook.com/ DailyAstorian Warrenton commissioners advocate for library levy Election takes place Tuesday By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian WARRENTON — With only six days until the election, a town hall meeting in Warren- ton Wednesday night became one of the last public forums for city commissioners to advo- cate for a levy to fund library operations. Measure 4-189 is the fi rst time in nearly 15 years that the city has asked voters to con- sider increasing the library’s operational levy. If the measure passes Tuesday, the levy would jump from 9 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value to 33 cents, raising an estimated $933,773 over the next fi ve years. It is a modest increase, enough to ensure the library, “an important part of our commu- nity,” wouldn’t have to draw on other city funds to stay open and could add some services, Com- missioner Rick Newton said. Library board members say the community support is there. Members of a local polit- ical action committee, Save Our Library, have printed and dis- tributed posters and walked door-to-door to encourage peo- ple to vote “yes ” on the levy. Kelsey Balensifer, library board chairwoman, said she thinks the support would Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian The shelves at the Warrenton Community Library are full after staff and volunteers moved to a new facility at the end of May. have been there for the library even if it were still located in Hammond. But the move to Main Ave- nue this summer brought the library into the middle of down- town . Traffi c through the library — and awareness of what it offers — has greatly increased, she said. In a presentation about the library Wednesday night, site manager Nettie-Lee Calog said the next big step for the library if the measure passes is to add automation services — library bar codes on the books and a computer system that tracks where the books are and allows people to browse the library’s catalog on their home comput- ers. Library staff and volun- teers still hand stamp due dates on the books and keep track of the collection through a card catalog system. Calog also hopes to add a children’s librarian and be able to be open in the evenings. “Right now, we’re just bare bones,” Calog said, crediting a diligent group of volunteers with keeping the library afl oat. The library has only two paid employees, both working part time. Overall, Mayor Henry Bal- ensifer said, “We’re going to offer more.” As Calog started talking about what she plans to do “if the levy passes,” she paused and corrected to, “w hen the levy passes.” States seek candidates for fi shery advisory groups The Daily Astorian Oregon and Washington state fi shery managers are look- ing for candidates for advisory committees that provide guid- ance on sport and commercial fi shing issues on the Columbia and Snake rivers. Each term is for three years, beginning in 2018. The groups meet two to four times a year and assist with devel- oping recommendations for salmon, steelhead, sturgeon and smelt fi sheries. Members are expected to provide com- ments on issues in the North of Falcon season-setting pro- cess for salmon fi sheries, man- aged jointly by the two states. They also provide comments on Columbia River Compact commercial fi shing hearings and joint state hearings on rec- reational fi shing regulations. F al l B azaar & H oliday Sale Craft Item s • Gifts • Baked Goods H oliday D ecorations & m uch m ore! NOVEM BER 3 rd & 4 th 9 AM -4 PM CLATSOP CARE CENTER 646 16th St., Astoria Proceeds from the sale will be used to support a variety of resident activities PUBLIC NOTICE The CMH General Surgery Clinic Has Moved The CMH General Surgery Clinic and wound care services has moved to a new location. The new location will give us more space and allow us to serve you better: Professional Office Bldg #1 2055 Exchange Street, Ste 270 Astoria, OR 97103 Phone: 503-338-4670 Fax: 503-338-4671 To reach the new location, park on the west side of Columbia Memorial Hospital and enter through the main doors. Make a quick right and follow the hallway to Professional Office Building #1. Use the stairs or elevator on your left to reach the second floor and Suite 270. “Advisory group members provide an important voice for the fi shing public,” said Tucker Jones, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s program manager for ocean salmon and Columbia R iver fi sheries. “We are looking for candidates who are interested in fi lling that role.” The states will choose up to 20 candidates for each advi- sory group, striving to represent various aspects of the fi shing industry on the Columbia River. Any group or individual may submit a nomination, and nomi- nations will be accepted through Nov. 30. Nominations must include a resume with contact information and a statement that describes the nominee’s fi shing experience, interest in serving on the committee and ability to communicate with constituents. Current members may re apply but should contact state staff. Nominations may be sub- mitted by mail to John North, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, 17330 SE Clack- amas, OR 97015, by fax at 971-673-6072 or by e mail to john.a.north@state.or.us More information may be found at the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Department’s Colum- bia River Fisheries Manage- ment page on line. WANTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber Northwest Hardwoods • Longview, WA Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500 Warrenton United Methodist Church Annual Holiday Bazaar & Luncheon Saturday, November 4 th 10 am -2 pm 679 S. Main Avenue Warrenton Beautiful crafts, delicious baked goods, White Elephant Sale. Clatsop Post 12 Food Bank Fundraiser Spaghetti Dinner All Proceeds to the Clatsop Food Bank Friday Nov. 3 rd 4-6 pm or until gone 8 $ 00 6PM “Karaoke Dave” Children’s Christmas Toy Fundraiser BBQ Pork Rib Dinner All Proceeds to Clatsop County Children Saturday Nov. 4 th 3-6 pm or until gone 10 00 Music by Greg Parke Both Dinners are Open to the Public ASTORIA AMERICAN LEGION $ Clatsop Post 12 1132 Exchange Street 325-5771
