SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ SATURDAY, MAY 23, 2015
IMPOUNDMENT
OBITUARIES
FARNSWORTH—Ralph
Emery Farnsworth died
recently at
his home in
Dunes City
after a short
illness.
Ralph was
born in 1934
in Medford,
Mass.
He
spent
his
Ralph
childhood
Farnsworth
years work-
ing at his parents’ pie-filling
company after school during
the school year.
His summers were more
relaxed, spent with his broth-
er and sister at his grandpar-
ents’ blueberry farm in
Jonesport, Maine. There, his
grandmother made them
doughnuts, his grandfather
made them a little skiff and
the one rule they were subject
to was never to land on the
sow when they were jumping
off the neighbors’ barn roof.
Ralph and his brother
staunchly defended the Maine
coast from German U-boat
invasion during World War II
with an old deer rifle from a
tent in the back yard.
He attended Bridgton
Academy and Wilbraham
Academy, although he never
graduated due to his nearly
successful attempt to create
an indoor swimming pool in
the men’s locker room during
finals week.
He joined the National
Guard and served in Korea,
where he learned the finer
points of procurement, finess-
ing in the motor pool and may
or may not have diverted an
army train full of construction
supplies to a local orphanage.
He returned to Medford to
enroll
at
Northeastern
University and marry Audrey
Margaret Penn.
His attention span appar-
ently had improved by this
point, as he graduated with a
degree in business and stayed
married for more than 50
years until Audrey died in
2008.
Ralph spent most of his
career in industrial property
insurance, inspecting and
restructuring factories to
incorporate safety features
and practices in connection
with underwriting fire and
explosion risk.
He had a salesman’s inter-
est in people and a gift for
telling excruciatingly long
meandering jokes without
alienating his listeners.
He also had a long commit-
ment to diversity in his very
homogenous field, hiring tal-
ented minorities and women
and doing whatever it took to
help them succeed, including
in some cases taking them
suit shopping.
At home he was a tinkerer,
finishing basements, welding
sculptures, repairing appli-
ances and building treehouses
and ice rinks and whatever
Audrey envisioned for their
home. He knew the value of
theater in childrearing and
dispatched many spiders for
his family while never reveal-
ing his own revulsion.
He was also a talented
whistler and a surprisingly
good dancer when you could
get him out on the floor.
Ralph and Audrey moved
to Dunes City in 2001. From
his early days here, Ralph
was involved in protecting the
water quality of Woahink
Lake, initiating regular water
quality testing and supporting
the city ordinance that
required septic tanks around
the lake to be regularly
inspected and maintained.
In his spare time, he creat-
ed a stream of varied and
imaginative birdhouses with
many details supporting each
one’s theme.
Many people in Dunes City
and Florence have been on
the receiving end of one of his
root beer barrels or deadpan
jokes.
Ralph loved and protected
his wife, his family and his
community. For him, know-
ing that something was the
right thing to do meant that of
course he would do it; it was
that simple for him.
He will be missed greatly
by his son, Roger Farnsworth
of Austin, Texas; his daugh-
ter, Joyce Farnsworth of Palo
Alto, Calif.; his four grand-
children; his sister, Jean
Cooper in North Carolina;
his companion Suzie Navetta
of Dunes City; and the
countless other friends he
treasured from all stages of
his life.
He was preceded in death
by his brother Lewis and his
wife Audrey.
A memorial celebration of
his life is planned for
Saturday, June 6, at 2 p.m., at
the West Woahink Meeting
Hall (the yurt) on Canary
Road in Honeyman State
Park.
Donations in his name can
be made to Siuslaw Outreach
Services or the Oregon
Coastal Alliance.
LEWIS—Florence Emma
Lewis passed away early
Saturday
morning,
May
16,
2015,
at
Bay Area
Hospital in
Coos Bay.
At her
passing,
Florence Lewis F l o r e n c e
was
sur-
rounded by her husband and
loving family.
Florence was born Nov. 2,
1943, in Coquille, Ore., to
Rufus and Mary Crump. She
grew up in Coos Bay and
moved to Florence as a junior
in high school.
Florence graduated from
Siuslaw High School in 1961.
On Dec. 9, 1961, she mar-
ried Frank Lewis.
After several years living
in Eugene, Ore., she and her
family moved back to
Florence, where she spent 30
years driving a school bus,
helped her husband pastor a
local church and raised their
five children.
Before her full retirement,
she spent several years work-
ing as a certified nurse’s
assistant for Peace Harbor
Hospital.
After retirement, Florence
enjoyed mission work, travel-
ing and spending time with
her family.
Florence was a beloved
member of the Florence com-
munity who touched many
lives, especially the lives of
countless students who had
the pleasure of riding
her school bus over the
years. One of her greatest
joys was having second gen-
eration students ride her bus
and seeing her bus kids as
adults.
Florence was devoted to
her faith and gave generously
to those in need.
Florence is survived by her
loving husband of 53 years,
Frank Lewis; her children:
Christy Lewis, Ricky Lewis,
Forrest Lewis and Frankie
Lewis, Jr.; her sisters: Lidy
Mae Evarts, Rebeca Wozniak
and Kimberly Barton; 13
grandchildren and five great-
grandchildren.
She was preceded in death
by her parents; her brother,
Rufus; and her oldest son,
Troy Lewis.
The family will be holding
a private ceremony in June.
Donations in her name can
be made to Friends of
Florence.
Public input sought for Hwy 101 pedestrian safety
Providing safe pedestrian
crossing of Highway 101
in Honeyman State Park will
be among the topics discussed
at a public meeting May
27, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., in
the Bromley Room at the
Siuslaw
Public
Library
Bromey Room, 1460 Ninth St.
Highway 101 bisects the
park, with trails on both sides
of the highway and a pedestri-
an overpass connecting them.
Oregon Parks and Rec-
reation Department recently
reviewed the status of an
unofficial trail that hikers and
runners use to cross the high-
way at grade.
Officials are expanding
their review to cover the
entire trail system and how
best to connect the two sides
of the park, taking into con-
sideration the pedestrian over-
pass
that
opened
in
2005.
The meeting will be an
opportunity for trail users to
share ideas on safely crossing
the highway, best routes, trail-
heads, destinations and recre-
ation needs.
Comments will be used to
update and refine the prelimi-
nary concepts laid out for the
trail system in the 2009 mas-
ter plan.
The public is also invited to
comment online at honey
manstatepark.com; by email
at jaime.english@oregon.gov;
by phone at 503-986-0723; or
by mailing written comments
to Jaime English, OPRD, 725
Summer St. NE, Suite C,
Salem, OR 97301.
CITY LIGHTS CINEMAS
1930 Hwy 101 • Florence, OR 97439
Showtimes: May 22-28, 2015
$9 Regular/$8 Senior or Student/$7.50 Matinee/
$7 Child/$6.50 Member
Mad Max: Fury Road - 120 min (R) – “There is nothing easy or
predictable about what George Miller delivers with Mad Max: Fury
Road, a stone-cold action master class, beautiful and brainy and
startling in the ways it throws off the current defi nition of the block-
buster.” Hitfl ix
Fri, Sat: 12:20, 3:20, 6:20, 9:20 | Sun: 1:20, 4:20, 7:20 | Mon, Tue, Wed,
Thu: 12:20, 3:20, 6:20
NEW: Poltergeist 2D - 93 min (PG-13) - Sam Rockwell and Rosema-
rie DeWitt star in this franchise reboot with original thrills and chills.
With Jane Adams and Jared Harris (Mad Men).
Fri: 12:30, 3:30, 6:30, 9:15 | Sat: 2:15, 3:45, 6:00, 9:40 | Sun: 2:30, 4:40,
6:50
Mon: 12:30, 3:30, 6:30 | Tue: 2:10, 4:20, 8:10
Wed: 12:00, 2:10, 4:20, 8:10 | Thu: 12:30, 3:30, 6:30
Compartiendo Alimentos (Food Share) de Florence
es una despensa de alimentos que sirve a personas
necesitadas con cajas de comida de emergencia en el
área del Oeste del Condado de Lane. Nosotros distri-
buimos un suministro de 3 a 5 días de alimentos para
nuestros clientes, sin costo alguno, hasta 16 veces al
año, y estamos disponibles para todas las personas que
califi quen por bajos ingresos. Nuestra misión es aliviar
el hambre en el Oeste del Condado de Lane y creemos
que nadie debe sentir hambre, sin importar su raza o
grupo étnico. Compartiendo Alimentos (Food Share)
recientemente recibió dos becas específi camente para
ayudar a nuestra comunidad Latina, así que por favor
visite nuestra despensa y disfrute de nuestra “Área de
Comida Internacional”, que ahora provee harina de
maíz, o masa, tortillas de maíz, salsa mole, hojas de
maíz para tamales, salsa para enchiladas, jalapeños, y
mucho más. Nos encontramos en 2190 Spruce Street,
Florence, Oregón, en el mismo estacionamiento que
la Iglesia New Life Lutheran. ¡Gracias!
Pitch Perfect 2 - 115 min (PG-13) – “Reprising the kind of musical
performances, campus hijinks, stinging humor and sassy sisterhood
put in place by its eminently likeable predecessor, it
remixes the elements and comes up with something even slicker
and sharper.” HR
Fri: 12:10, 3:10, 6:10, 9:10 | Sat: 11:40 AM, 4:30, 7:05, 8:20 | Sun: 1:10,
4:10, 7:10
Mon: 12:10, 3:10, 6:10 | Tue, Wed: 12:10, 2:50, 5:30 | Thu: 12:10, 3:10,
6:10
NEW: Tomorrowland - 130 min (PG) – “Bird [director of The Incred-
ibles] has crafted a gorgeous world rife with creativity and inventive
images. A Spielbergian sense of candid awe and wonder permeates
each scene with a nostalgic edge.” Indiewire
Fri, Sat: 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, 9:00 | Sun: 1:00, 4:00, 7:00 | Mon-Thu: 12:00,
3:00, 6:00
Special Events:
Julius Caesar - 180 min – Globe On Screen
Sat: 12:00 | Wed: 6:30 – Shakespeare done right.
In Country - 80 min – Filmed in Oregon – fascinating doc on Viet-
nam War re-enactors
Sun: 12:30 – True Story Tuesday Encore Screening
Merchants of Doubt - 96 min (PG-13) – A brilliant takedown of
American spin-doctors.
Tue: 11:45am, 6:40 – True Story Tuesday
WWW.CITYLIGHTSCINEMAS.COM
A female Jack Russell
terrier mix #12632 has
been impounded at the
Florence Area Humane
Society.
Call 541-997-4277 or
stop by the shelter at 2840
Rhododendron Drive to
claim.
Visit FAHS on the web at
florencehumane.org.
12632
*Valid for new patients only. Call for details. Expires 4/10/2015
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
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