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wallowa.com
March 8, 2017
Wallowa County Chieftain
O BITUARIES
Linda Lee (Boschee)
October 5, 1947 – March 1, 2017
James Bryce (Butch) Wicklander
June 20, 1940 – February 17, 2017
Austin Barton
March 14, 1927–February 27, 2017
Linda Lee (Boschee) Kni-
fong, 69, died March 1, 2017 at
her home in Enterprise.
Linda was born October 5,
1947 in Walla Walla, WA to the
late William & Shirley Boschee.
She and her sister Jenice
(Boschee) Gibson attended
grade schools in Pilot Rock,
OR and graduated from Mc-
Loughlin Union High School in
Milton-Freewater. She earned a
certifi cate in bookkeeping from
Kinman Business Institute in
Spokane, WA. In 1966, she
married Ernie Knifong in Milton-Freewater, OR. They had
two sons, Michael (deceased), and Kenneth. They then moved
to Enterprise, OR. Linda was the book-keeper for the family
business of Ern’s Electric until the time of their divorce. She
then ran her own janitorial business, ”Star Janitorial.”
Linda was an active member of the First Baptist Church
in Enterprise, the Hurricane Creek grange, and the Wallowa
Mountain Quilter’s Guild. She had a passion for quilting, en-
joyed attending her grandson’s athletic events, loved black-
berry picking, camping on the Snake River, cooking with her
grange friends, watching westerns with her son, Mike, and
playing computer games.
Survivors include son Ken, (Colby), daughter-in-law, Mi-
chelle, sister Jenice Gibson & 4 grandchildren, Kennisen, Kel-
lan, Emily, & Erika and numerous aunts and uncles. She was
predeceased in death by her son Mike.
The Hurricane Creek Grange (82930 Airport Ln, Joseph, Or
97846) will be hosting a memorial ceremony at their monthly
meeting on March 15, 2017. It is a potluck at 6:00 PM and
memorial at 7:00. All who knew Linda are invited.
A second service will be held at the First Baptist Church in
Enterprise at a later date that will be posted in the Chieftain.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Hurricane
Creek Grange Education Committee 82930 Airport Ln, Joseph
Or. 97846.
James Bryce (Butch)
Wicklander, 76, died Friday,
February 17, 2017 at Wallowa
Memorial Hospital. He leaves
his wife of 49 years, Joyce
Darlene (Richard) Wick-
lander, his son Wendell Craig
(Beau) Wicklander, son James
Keith Miller, daughter Belin-
da Gayle Buswell, sister Moo-
nyeen Loftus and her husband
Kenneth Loftus, 5 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren, and
numerous nieces and nephews.
Butch was preceded in death by his grandmother Jesse
Greene, Mother Blanche Mitchell, Stepfather Bill Mitchell,
Father Hector Wicklander, Sister Patricia Kirkpatrick, Broth-
ers Charles and Weldon (Monk) Wicklander, daughter Cha-
risse Darnell Miller, nephew Kurt Wicklander, and nephew
Greg Loftus.
Butch was born in Elgin, Oregon and later moved with
his family to Joseph where he graduated from JHS. He loved
sports and played for the EW Shrine game along with some
of his friends. He served 2 years in the army where He re-
ceived the rifl e sharpshooter award and the Outstanding At-
tached E.M. for AADT award. He served in the reserves for
another 2 years.
Butch loved spending time with his family fi shing, hunting,
camping, swimming and water skiing. His love of the outdoors
was a trait he handed down to his children and grandchildren.
He enjoyed watching his grandchildren play sports and teach-
ing them to hunt and fi sh. He loved to learn and enjoyed a good
word challenge. Butch was an avid reader and enjoyed sharing
his knowledge and love of reloading and hunting with many
others that would stop by to learn the trade.
A celebration of life will be held on Saturday June 24,
2017. Details of the time and place will be provided later
near the date. In lieu of fl owers, due to health condition and
allergies, an account has been set up for the family at Com-
munity Bank. The family would like to thank everyone for
their support and consideration during this trying time.
Austin Barton was born the
7th son on March 14, 1927, to
Everett and Laura Barton, at his
grandmother’s home in Port-
land, Oregon. The family trans-
ported the 3-week old Austin on
the back of a pack mule to their
homestead deep in Hells Canyon,
near Joseph Oregon. He grew up
a ranch hand, breaking horses,
raising cattle and putting up loose
haystacks. Austin would recount
feeding livestock by pitchfork,
“from loose stack to horse-drawn
wagon, then offl oading to the cattle. Paid a dollar per day”
He told a story of climbing on an “ornery, barren mare” in
the barn. She had taken a mind to buck him off; soon they broke
through the back wall of the barn. He sums the experience up say-
ing, “that hurt.”
Austin went to grade school and high school in Joseph, Oregon
up to the eleventh grade. While there he played on the football and
basketball teams and was a golden-gloves boxer in the Valley. He
said, “My Joseph high school class size was about large enough to
make the football team.”
After a stint working in an aircraft factory in Portland in the
early days of World War II, Austin served from November 1944 to
August 1946 in the Navy on board ship as a Radioman Third Class,
receiving an Asiatic Pacifi c Area Campaign Medal and World War
II Victory Medal. Finishing his service on the island of Guam, he
recalled, “because of all of the critters running around, any food not
in cans had to be suspended from the ceiling on strings.”
After coming home from the War, Austin started a family in
Joseph, Oregon while working various jobs, including driving a
creamery truck, selling bibles, fi ghting fi res, as a barber, bus driver
and as a carpenter during construction of the Hells Canyon dams.
A severe back injury while working on the dams at the age of 29,
forced him to seek a career change.
As a child, Austin exhibited a natural talent for drawing and
sketching, doodling small fi gures around the perimeter of his
school papers, invoking the ire of his teachers. It was this talent
that provided Austin the path to his new career in commercial art
and eventually sculpting.
His loving wife, Shirley, supported him in his efforts while they
raised their eight children and working together, they eventually
achieved international recognition producing fi ne western bronze
art.
Austin’s imagination was inspired by those early years on
ranches in the backcountry of the Blue Mountains. Those simple
moments of his youth are still alive in his art. Surrounded by family
and art works in progress, Austin passed on to his late wife Shir-
ley’s arms at home 15 days short of his 90th birthday.
Austin is survived by; Al Barton, Tim Ryerse, Debby Groth,
Teresa Ryerse, Janet Clements, Jim Barton, Louella Bennett &
Gayle Ryerse. Austin will be laid to rest Wednesday March 8th,
2017 1:00pm at Prairie Creek Cemetery.
About Obituaries
News obituaries are a free service of the
Wallowa County Chieftain.
The paper accepts obituaries from the
family or funeral home. Information sub-
mitted is subject to editing. Send obitu-
aries by e-mail, obits@wallowa.com; fax,
541-426-3921; or mail, PO Box 338, En-
terprise, OR 97828. The deadline to sub-
mit an obituary is 2 p.m. Monday for the
Wednesday paper. For more information,
or to inquire about a paid memorial, call
541-426-4567.
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Nancy Ralls ought to fi t
right into Wallowa County.
The new Enterprise post-
master lives on a 42-acre
ranch in Wallowa, was a 4-H
leader for 17 years, and hails
from a small Oregon town.
“We’re fi nding we really
fi t,” said Ralls. “Though Mike
Warner (former postmas-
ter) was here the other day
and was teasing me because
I locked my offi ce door. He
said, ‘What, are you from the
big city?’”
As for the post offi ce, it’s
not much of an adjustment for
a woman who has been post-
master of both a larger and a
smaller post offi ce. And, she’s
still got most of the same crew
that Warner had.
“I can’t see anybody in this
offi ce that is planning on leav-
ing in the near future,” Nancy
said
Ralls hails from Dexter, in
Douglas County. She served as
postmaster of Junction City for
10 years before moving back
to Dexter to serve as postmas-
ter for Junction City.
She and her husband Lynn
have purchased Bud Stone’s
farm in Wallowa, Her father
Clyde lives with the family.
Lynn has
been retired for
several years
and enjoys be-
ing a stay-at-
home rancher
dad to the cou-
ple’s 10-year-
old son, Dako-
Ralls
ta. The Ralls
had three other
children, all grown now, and
all rural kids who raised pigs
and steers.
Two of her grown children,
along with other relatives from
both sides of the family live in
the Eastern Oregon/Western
Idaho area, so the Ralls are
much closer to extended fami-
ly out here in Wallowa County.
The Ralls’ Wallowa farm
supports crossbred cattle.
Weather
Forecast
Courtesy of Weather Underground. www.wunderground.com
High Low Conditions
March 9
46
40
Rain
March 10
48
33
Rain
March 11
49
33
Rain
March 12
46
46
Rain
March 13
48
38
Rain
March 14
45
33
Rain
Phases of the moon
March 12
March 20
March 27
Full Moon
Last Quarter
New Moon
April 3
1st Quarter
WALLOWA COUNTY SUNRISE AND SUNSET MARCH 9-15
(from the U.S. Naval Observatory)
THUR
March 9
6:12 a.m.
5:48 p.m.
FRI
SAT
SUN
MON
TUES
WED
March 10
6:10 a.m.
5:49 p.m.
March 11
6:08 a.m.
5:50 p.m.
March 12
6:07 a.m.
5:52 p.m.
March 13
6:05 a.m.
5:53 p.m.
March 14
6:03 a.m.
5:54 p.m.
March 15
6:01 a.m.
5:56 p.m.