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Hood River News, Wednesday, April 29, 2015
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Continued from Page A5
Mary Covey
Mary Martha (McAtee)
Covey, 94, passed away Friday,
April 24, 2015, at her home in
Hood River, Ore.
Services
are planned
for 2 p.m.
T h u r s d a y,
April 30, and
friends are in-
vited to join
family during
a time of visi-
tation
on
We d n e s d ay,
April 29 from
4-8 p.m. Both
Mary’s ser-
vice and time
of viewing
will be at An-
derson’s Trib- Mary Covey
ute Center
(Funerals • Receptions • Cre-
mations), 1401 Belmont Ave.,
Hood River, Ore.
Mary was born Sept. 26,
1920, on the family homestead
in the beautiful Madison Val-
ley of southwestern Montana
near Ennis. She came as the
third child and second daugh-
ter of Edward Leonard and
Dorothy (Doyle) McAtee.
Mary was delivered by her fa-
ther as the country doctor for
the area was with another
birth miles away. Two more
brothers and another sister
completed the family.
She loved the out-of-doors
and spent hours with her fam-
ily and friends climbing the
hills, riding her horse and
searching for arrowheads and
other treasures in her youth.
In 1937 a man called “Okla-
homa” arrived on the scene
and captured her heart. Bur-
ley Dow Covey and Mary
Martha McAtee were married
on her 17th birthday, Sept. 26,
1937, at the home of the
Methodist minister in McAl-
lister, Mont. Five children
were born to this marriage;
four daughters and a son.
In the early years, they lived
in various places in Montana,
Idaho, Washington, Oklahoma
and back to Montana. She
found her spot of Heaven,
though, when they came to the
Hood River Valley in 1956.
With trees to trim, smudge
posts to light, fruit to pick and
pack and house to clean and
paint, lawns to weed and mow,
meals to nourish family and
friends, and for a time, cook-
ing for the Hood River Christ-
ian School. For almost 60 years
there was no stopping this en-
ergetic woman.
Mary was Grandma Covey
to 15 grandchildren, 25 great-
grandchildren, six great-great-
grandchildren as well as many
others who were nurtured by
her care and hugs.
Preceding her in death were
her husband of 42 years; son
Dean Covey; son-in-law Jim
Edwards; two grandsons,
Jimmy Bowlin and Jon Nor-
man; her parents; three broth-
ers: Leonard, Jim and Tom;
and sister Alice Gecho.
Mary is survived by her
daughters, Jessie (Ted) Robert-
son, of Provo, Utah, Dorothy
(Chuck) Norman, of Parkdale,
Ore., Mary Martha (Bob)
Zeman, of Mt. Hood, Ore. and
Becky (Don) Baldwin, of Hood
River, Ore.; daughter-in-law
Renee Covey Gaede, of Bend,
Ore.; and sister Marjean
Tezak, of Sheridan, Mont.
The family would like to
thank Mary’s caregivers:
Katie Guzman and Teri
Radliff, and all the others who
gave such wonderful service.
Please visit andersonstrib-
utecenter.com to leave a note
of condolence for family.
Bette Benjamin
Bette Ann Merz Benjamin’s
vibrant and fruitful life began
and was lived out in the beau-
tiful Hood River Valley at the
foot of Mount Hood. She
passed gently from this life
April 23, 2015, at her home in
Parkdale,
Ore., with her
loving and
dedicated hus-
band Rick by
her side, and
is now with
our Lord and
Savior, Jesus
Christ.
Bette was
bor n March
19, 1951, in the
Hood River
Hospital to
Lewis and
Janice Merz,
Bette
the youngest
Benjamin
of their seven
children. The
family lived at their fruit or-
chard in view of beautiful
Mount Hood where Bette had
a wonderful childhood, grow-
ing up as a country farm girl,
surrounded by family, friends,
and animals and developing a
life-long appreciation of na-
ture, birds and anything that
could be grown. Bette’s exu-
berant nature showed itself
often through childhood ad-
ventures such as the time she
and her sisters brought a
horse into the kitchen just to
see what would happen; or
since she was the youngest of
seven, there was no big-girl
bed available and at 7 years old
she was still in the crib. Bette
got tired of climbing in and
out over the rails, so without
asking, she got her dad’s saw
and cut the side off the crib to
make her own big-girl bed.
She attended Parkdale Ele-
mentary and Middle School
and graduated from Wy’east
High School in 1969. Through
her school years, she partici-
pated in numerous activities,
including 4-H, Job’s Daugh-
ters, cheerleading, gymnas-
tics, tap and other forms of
dance. After graduation, Bette
left Parkdale to attend the Uni-
versity of Oregon and gradu-
ated with a degree in physical
education and health in 1973.
In the early 1980s she and Rick
completed Master of the Arts
degrees at Lewis and Clark
College.
Bette met Rick Benjamin in
school in 1966 and they mar-
ried in 1971. Bette’s love of col-
ors was on full display during
the wedding, with the rainbow
spectrum on the bridesmaids’
gowns, each in their own
bright color. They celebrated
43 years of marriage last Au-
gust and were together as a
couple 47 years.
After completing studies at
U of O, Bette and Rick re-
turned to Hood River to work
as teachers. In 1978, they ac-
quired land and began farm-
ing their orchard for pears.
Bette taught middle school at
Wy’east until 1977 when she
and Rick started their family.
Bette and Rick were blessed to
have three daughters: Vanes-
sa, Cecily and Lindsay. She
was a busy mom to three ac-
tive girls growing up on the
farm and was always ready to
play (while teaching them im-
portant lessons at the same
time). They were involved
with 4-H — raising sheep,
goats, dogs; and also sewing,
photography and cooking —
all projects that Bette loved
doing, too. She was highly in-
volved in The Hood River
County Fair every year begin-
ning from childhood and long
into her adult years.
In 1980, Bette combined her
desire to teach, to promote
physical fitness and to provide
service to the community, all
while still being available for
her family, when she founded
Rainbow Gymnastics School.
She loved teaching in that ca-
pacity for 21 years and many
children in Hood River County
— in addition to her own
daughters and other family
members — took lessons from
Bette. In the later years, the
classes included some second-
generation students — chil-
dren whose parents had gym-
nastics classes with Bette
when they were young.
Music was a life-long de-
light for Bette. She enjoyed
music of many genres, espe-
cially Christian music. She
loved to find and use lively, joy-
ful, upbeat music for the chil-
dren in her gymnastics class-
es. When she wasn’t teaching
gymnastics, Bette still found
an outlet for her love of music
and dance. If a song she en-
joyed came on the radio, she
often gleefully started dancing
with those in the room (line
dancing, swing, tap, jazz –
whatever fit the beat). It was
one of the many ways that her
spontaneous, positive spirit
expressed itself and would in-
fectiously build up all those
around her.
Along with raising Vanessa,
Cecily and Lindsay and oper-
ating Rainbow Gymnastics
through these years, Bette was
also a hard-working farm wife
and partner in the orchard,
working side by side with Rick
as they enlarged and improved
the orchard and raised high-
quality fruit crops every grow-
ing season. As the Benjamin
girls grew older and moved
onto college and into their
adult years, Bette returned to
teaching for Hood River Coun-
ty School District and for sev-
eral years was the PE teacher
at Pine Grove Elementary
School. She was such an en-
couragement to her students
and she led them to enjoy
physical fitness so much that
they tracked their running
miles and received a national
“Road Runner” award, which
she and Rick went to New York
to accept on behalf of the
hardworking Pine Grove stu-
dents of which she was so
proud.
Bette loved her family and
friends. She and Rick were
grateful to live near most of
their siblings and friends.
Bette was a devoted daughter,
a treasured little sister, a cher-
ished wife and a loving and
dedicated mother and grand-
mother. Bette’s greatest joy
and happiness was being with
Rick and her daughters, their
husbands and the grandchil-
dren. Whenever grandkids
would visit, Bette was prompt-
ly on the floor playing with the
youngest ones or doing crafts
and projects in her garden and
kitchen with the older ones.
She and her grandkids were
inseparable and they loved
their time with Grandma and
Grandpa.
She was also a special per-
son to her many nieces and
nephews. Her love for people
and caring nature extended
beyond family. Bette valued
friends from all the eras of her
life, maintaining many of
those friendships throughout
the years. But she didn’t just
keep the old friends — Bette
added deep friendships all her
life with people of all ages.
Bette and Rick warmly wel-
comed the many young
friends her daughters invited
home and made them feel like
family, it was very important
to her that everyone felt wel-
come and included. Bette’s
many dear friends will miss
the warmth and kindness of a
cherished friend.
Her family was her joy. Rick
was a wonderful husband to
grow with through the years
and they have enjoyed a sweet,
God-centered life together.
Bette was proud of the women
her daughters have become
and the families they are
growing. She welcomed the
young men who would later
marry Vanessa, Cecily and
Lindsay, and loved them as her
sons. As each grandchild was
born and the group of Ben-
jamin grandkids grew more
numerous (eight and count-
ing!), spending time with them
had been a delight for Bette
and will continue to be for
Rick. A particular pleasure
has been hosting these cher-
ished little people from time to
time — allowing their moms
and dads a little time off from
the busy job of parenting. And
the grandchildren were
blessed to spend time with
their loving, playful, creative,
energetic Grandma Bette. Her
grandkids always loved the
spontaneous opportunity to
take a “Gator ride” with
Grandma around the orchard,
or to “help Grandma” by
catching tadpoles, frogs and
salamanders from her garden
pond. Bette always used these
times for fun, but never
missed a teachable moment to
teach her grandchildren about
God, how to treat others re-
Service Announcements
Ramón Tostado
R a m ó n To s t a d o, 7 3 ,
passed away on Saturday,
April 25, 2015, at Prestige
Post-Acute and Rehabilita-
tion Center in Gresham,
Ore. Ramon was born on
June 20, 1941.
A viewing and vigil are
planned for Thursday, April
30, from noon to 8 p.m. with
Rosary being prayed at 7
p.m. Mass will be Friday,
May 1, at 7 p.m. at St. Mary’s
Catholic Church, 1501 Bel-
mont Ave., Hood River, OR
97031.
Ramón Tostado H. falle-
cio el sábado 25 de Abril,
2015 en Prestige Post-Acute
y Rehabilitación en Gre-
sham, Ore gon. Ramon
nacio el 20 de Junio, 1941 y
tenia 73 anos de edad en el
momento de su fallecimien-
to. Ramón nació y creció en
San Juan de los Lagos Jal.
México. El tenía cinco hijos
y cinco hijas. La mayor
parte de su familia está en
México, y su última volun-
tad era ser enterrado en
México. Sus donaciones
ayudaran para que su deseo
se haga realidad. Los arreg-
los están bajo la dirección
de Homenaje Centro de An-
derson. Si gustan acom-
pañar nos el cuerpo pre-
sente de Ramón será el día
Jueves 30 de Abril de las 12
de la tarde hasta las 8 de la
tarde en la Iglesia Católica
Santa María, y el Rosario a
las 7 p.m. La misa de cuerpo
presente será el día Viernes
1 de Mayo a las 7 p.m. en la
Iglesia católica Santa María
en Hood River, 1501 Belmont
Ave., Hood River.
Arrangements are under
the direction of Anderson’s
Tribute Center (Funerals •
Receptions • Cremations),
1401 Belmont Ave., Hood
River, OR 97031; 541-386-
1000. Please visit anderson-
stributecenter.com to leave
a note of condolence for
family.
Bernie Dittenhofer
NMLS #2550 NMLS #114231 ML 832-21
Donald McClain
Donald McClain, 87,
passed away Saturday, April
18, 2015, at the Oregon Veter-
ans’ Home in The Dalles,
Ore. Donald was born March
22, 1928.
Graveside services are
planned for 11 a.m. Saturday,
May 9, at the Pine Grove
Butte Cemetery, 2687 Van
Horn Drive, Hood River.
Arrangements are under
William Logue
Your
Mortgage
Lender
A division of Mann Mortgage, LLC
509 Cascade Ave., Suite F, Hood River
Apply at berniedittenhofer.westcorpmortgage.com
the direction of Anderson’s
Tribute Center (Funerals •
Receptions • Cremations),
1401 Belmont Ave., Hood
River, OR 97031; 541-386-1000.
Please visit andersonstrib-
utecenter.com to leave a note
of condolence for family.
Ellen Dodge
Ellen L. Dodge passed
away April 26, 2015, in Cul-
ver, Ore. She was born Jan.
10, 1928, in Chapin, Idaho.
Memorial services will be
held May 2 at 11 a.m. at the
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, 12th and
Oak streets, Madras, Ore.
Remembrances may be
made to the Culver Commu-
nity Lunch Program, 200 1st
Ave., Culver, OR 97734.
Mission Chairs
For Sale
William K. Lo gue, 81,
passed away Friday, April
24, 2015, at his home in Cas-
cade Locks, Ore. William
was born Jan. 1, 1934.
Services are planned for
11 a.m. Friday, May 1, at the
Cascade Locks Community
Church, 5 S.W. Benson Ave.,
Cascade Locks, OR 97014.
Call Bernie today
541-490-0167
Licensed Mortgage Banker
Arrangements are under
the direction of Anderson’s
Tribute Center (Funerals •
Receptions • Cremations),
1401 Belmont Ave., Hood
River, OR 97031; 541-386-
1000. Please visit anderson-
stributecenter.com to leave
a note of condolence for
family.
6 chairs total; 2 with arms
$300 for all 6
Call 541-490-7529
or email mdogotch@gmail.com
spectfully, and the value of a
job well done.
Bette was a woman of un-
wavering Christian faith. In
her young years she attended
Parkdale Community Church.
She and Rick have been in-
volved in the Hood River
Christian Missionary Alliance
Church for many years now
and have served as dea-
con/deaconess for the church,
led home Bible studies and
taught Sunday school over the
years. Bette’s faith walk was
expressed not only in her ser-
vice at church, but was evi-
dent throughout her home,
conversations and interac-
tions with everyone she met.
Bette would regularly spend
time reading God’s Word and
would post snippets of Scrip-
ture around the house to pro-
vide encouragement to her
and others. If people asked
questions about the Scripture,
she would use this as an op-
portunity to witness to others
about what Jesus has done in
her life. She was a fearless
prayer warrior and she and
Rick would diligently hold oth-
ers up in their prayer time,
they benefitted countless oth-
ers through their loving and
faithful efforts.
Bette loved photography.
She appreciated quality pic-
tures of accomplished photog-
raphers and always had a cam-
era available to capture spe-
cial moments around her.
Bette’s love of wildflower
hikes in the spring was some-
thing she inherited from her
mother, Janice. She loved get-
ting out in the beautiful natur-
al landscapes around Parkdale
or anywhere in the beautiful
state of Oregon at any time
during the year. Her apprecia-
tion of nature inspired her
love of gardening and Bette
created spectacular gardens
around their home. She took
great joy in the bounty, beauty
and vibrant array of colors
from her flower gardens and
they were a centerpiece of
many family events, and pro-
vided visitors with a gorgeous
eyeful as they arrived at Rick
and Bette’s home. Bette could
see the beauty of God’s cre-
ation represented in the sim-
ple artistry of a fresh blossom.
Bette delighted in treasure-
hunting trips to Goodwill and
was famous for finding just
the right item for whatever
purpose, most often for her
family and friends. Dogs were
her beloved companions and
she often had multiple dogs at
a time.
Bette was a bundle of ener-
gy. There was always a project
(usually three or four simulta-
neously) going on at home in
addition to the work of day to
day, season to season life at
the farmhouse. Bette loved
family photos and had them
prominently
displayed
around the house along with
craft items from daughters,
grandkids and other young
friends. She loved to decorate
the family home for holidays
A6
with her many beautiful
pieces of art, antiques and
family heirlooms. Having
family and friends for dinners
in the house in winter or sum-
mer, and barbecues outdoor
on the deck with the spectacu-
lar view of Mount Hood were
a special treat. Bette was fa-
mous for dinners of chili and
cinnamon rolls at any time of
the year.
She used the gifts she had
been given in life, for service
to others. Bette always put
others before herself, and de-
liberately looked for ways to
serve her family, friends, stu-
dents and community. She
sincerely believed the words
of Jesus, that “it is better to
give than to receive,” and “to
treat others as you would
have them treat you.” Bette
viewed her first calling as ser-
vice to God, through serving
those around her and would
often invite relatives, friends
or students into her home in
the hope of helping them
through hard times by
demonstrating what a posi-
tive, Christ-centered life
looked like.
Travel was something
Bette loved to do with Rick —
especially to visit family and
friends. The Oregon Coast
was always a favorite destina-
tion but an exciting trip to
New York City a few years ago
was a special event and
among several they took
around the U.S. Gardening, at-
tending music concerts and
theater, and watching sport-
ing events — especially foot-
ball, basketball and gymnas-
tics — in person or on televi-
sion — are some special activ-
ities that Bette and Rick
would enjoy together in their
spare time.
Bette is survived by her
beloved husband of 41 years,
Rick Benjamin; daughter
Vanessa Rice and her hus-
band Nathan and their chil-
dren Hannah, Emily, Ben-
jamin, Joseph and David of
Parkdale, Ore.; daughter Ceci-
ly Watrud and her husband
Eric and their children Naomi
and Samuel of Lakeview, Ore.;
daughter Lindsay Holmson
and her husband Andy and
their son Lucas, of Bain-
bridge, Wash. She is also sur-
vived by her sisters Pat Camp-
bell, Ruth McAlexander, Sue
Donnelly, her brother Lewis
Merz Jr. and their families.
She was preceded to Heaven
by her parents, Lewis and Jan-
ice Merz; sister Judy Wyers
and sister Mary Lou Tolbert.
A memorial fund in Bette’s
name benefitting The Great
Commission, Pancreatic Can-
cer Action Network, Hood
River Rotary and Providence
Hospice of the Gorge is held at
Columbia Bank in Hood River.
Bette will be g reatly
missed, but we are all blessed
for having known and loved
her. A Celebration of Life ser-
vice will be held at the Hood
River Alliance Church Satur-
day, May 2, at 11 a.m.
Death Notices
Marilyn Miller
Marilyn Miller, 92, passed
away Friday, April 25, 2015, at
Parkhurst Place in Hood
River, Ore. Marilyn was born
Aug. 23, 1922.
Arrangements are under
the direction of Anderson’s
Tribute Center (Funerals • Re-
ceptions • Cremations), 1401
Belmont Ave., Hood River, OR
97031; 541-386-1000. Please visit
andersonstributecenter.com
to leave a note of condolence
for family.
David Shelton
David A. Shelton, longtime
resident of Hood River, Ore.,
passed away at his home on
April, 23, 2015, at the age of 59.
A celebration of his life will
be held at a later date.
Gardner Funeral Home
handled cremation arrange-
ments.
Myrtle White
Myrtle White, 95, passed
away on Tuesday, April 28,
2015, at Hawks Ridge Assisted
Living in Hood River, Ore.
Myrtle was born on Sept. 16,
1919.
Services are pending with
arrangements under the di-
rection of Anderson’s Tribute
Center, 1401 Belmont Ave.,
Hood River, OR 97031; 541-386-
1000. Please visit anderson-
stributecenter.com to leave a
note of condolence for family.
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