SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
OBITUARIES
SNEDDON —Geralean
(Gerry) Sneddon passed away
April
22,
2016.
A memori-
al
service
will be held
S a t u r d a y,
May
14,
beginning at
2 p.m., at the
Florence
Geralean
Christian
Sneddon
C h u r c h
(Second and Ivy streets) in
Florence.
Friends are invited to join
the family immediately follow-
ing the service at the church. A
graveside interment will be at
Pine Haven Cemetery in
Halfway, Ore., on Saturday,
May 28, at 11 a.m.
Online obituary and condo-
lences can be shared at
www.tamispinevalleyfuneral
home.com.
WILLIAMS —Mitchel
DeWayne Williams, 56, of
Mapleton, Ore., passed away
unexpectedly at his home on
May 7, 2016.
He was bigger than life, a
man with honor and high prin-
ciples; he loved his family,
fishing, God and country.
Mitch’s mother and father
lived in Mapleton at the time of
his birth on
Dec.
15,
1959.
Mitch
always said
he had not
gone far in
life as his
d r e a m
home for
Mitchel
the past 14
Williams
years was
located just a mile up river. His
family moved to Florence
where he attended school until
high school, when they moved
to Zillah to help his grandpar-
ents on their family farm.
He was student body presi-
dent, played football and was
on the wrestling team. He grad-
uated from Zillah High School
in 1978. Mitch felt strong ties
to classmates at both Zillah and
Siuslaw and regularly attended
class reunions for both schools.
After graduation, he moved
back to Florence and married
Kimberly Holden in 1983, and
had two children.
He met the love of his life,
Elaine, and her three boys, in
1989. They raised their chil-
dren together as one big happy
family and were married in
1994 in a ceremony on the
Sternwheeler on the Siuslaw
River.
He was a commercial fisher-
man for many years, worked at
American Laminators in
Swisshome and was owner and
operator of Mitch Williams
Construction for the past 20
years.
Mitch was proud of his fam-
ily; it was his world.
He is survived by his wife,
Elaine; and his five children:
Whitney of Florence, Wade
(Kirsten) of Mapleton, Jacob
(Bryndie) of McMinnville,
Jeffery (Bari) of Springfield,
Joseph (Jessica) of Oakridge,
and Drew Holden (Brooke) of
Portland; his father, Wendell,
of Zillah, Wash.; a sister,
Maryann; nephews Logan and
Brady of Granger, Wash.; his
brother, Guy; his nieces:
Morgan and Lydia; his nephew
Rafe of Kooskia, ID; and
nieces Lindsey, Leanna and
Tronda.
He and Elaine shared nine
incredible
grandchildren:
Chase, Tanner and Brylie
Second Saturday Gallery Tour set to inspire
Enjoy the Second Saturday
Gallery Tour on Saturday, May
14, from 3 to 5 p.m. This self-
guided tour, from Old Town to
the 101 Uptown Region,
inspires locals and visiting
tourists alike and reinforces
Florence as an ever-evolving
arts destination.
More than 13 organizations
will be participating on the
tour, including: Kenneth B Art
Studios, showing Giuliano
Marchetti and Gigi Lassan
works in a show titled
“PICT.up.ART;”
Siuslaw
Public Library in Florence is
hosting its Hang it All show fea-
turing an animals theme; con-
tinuing the 20th year celebra-
tions for the Florence Events
Center is the Dancing with Sea
Lions GeoCache event; new
works are up at the Florence
Regional Arts Alliance (FRAA)
by its member artists; and
Amanda McCrea is the Artist of
the Month at Old Town Coffee
Roasters.
The gallery tour begins at
any of the participating loca-
tions.
For more information, visit
2ndSaturdayGalleryTour.com.
Florence Food Share
Monthly Statistics
April 2016
Households served . . . . . 629
Ages served
Infants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Children 3-12 . . . . . . . . . 248
Teens 13-17 . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Adults 18-54 . . . . . . . . . . 790
Seniors 55+ . . . . . . . . . . . 453
Total served . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,707
Florence Food Share, 2190 Spruce St.,
P.O. Box 2514, Florence, OR 97439
WESTERN LANE
AMBULANCE
OPEN HOUSE
(Jacob and Bryndie), Chandler
and Kian (Jeff and Bari), Kylie,
Emmalee and Spencer (Joey
and Jessica), and Jordan
(Whitney).
There were literally hun-
dreds of aunts, uncles, cousins,
nieces, nephews and thousands
of friends.
He was preceded in death by
his mother, Brenda, in 2001;
and his brothers, Douglas and
Gregory, in 2008.
A celebration of life will be
held from 10 a.m. to noon at
the Florence Events Center on
Saturday, May 14.
Gifts and contributions can
be made in his name to
Mapleton STEP and Mapleton
Fireworks Fund.
Burns’s Riverside Chapel
Florence Funeral Home was in
charge of arrangements.
HATCH—Don
“Joey”
Hatch, 77, of Florence, passed
away May 8, 2016.
Arrangements are being held
through Burns’s Riverside
Chapel Florence Funeral
Home.
WEATHER DATA
D ATE
May. 3
May 4
May 5
May 6
May 7
May 8
May 9
H IGH
60
56
59
65
62
60
61
Rainfall
Month: 0.15”
L OW R AIN
52
50
49
41
45
49
44
0.05
0.10
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Rhody Express announces
special Rhody Days hours
Don’t miss the 2016
Rhododendron Festival festiv-
ities from May 20 to 22.
The Rhody Express will
operate its regular hours and
route on Friday, May 20, from
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fares are $1
one-way or $2 all day.
For those wanting to experi-
ence the night life during the
Rhody Festival, the Rhody
Express is a safe and conven-
ient way to get you from Bay
Street to any lodging within
the city limits free of charge
from 9 p.m. until 3 a.m. on
Friday and Saturday nights,
May 20 and 21.
So have fun and remember
to drink responsibly. Pickup is
at the intersection of Bay and
Maple streets.
For a detailed bus schedule,
pick up a brochure at the
Visitor’s Center, 290 Highway
101, City Hall or online at
www.ltd.org/rhody.
For more information, call
the Rhody Express at 541-902-
2067.
A LICE B RAUER C HRISTIAN P RESCHOOL
SUMMER
CAMP
NOW ENROLLING FOR OUR SUMMER CAMP PROGRAM!
June, July and August
Monday - Friday 7:30 am - 5:30 pm
Join us as we discover various outdoor weekly
themes including, Camping, Super Heroes, 4th
of July, Ocean, Art Appreciation, Dragonology,
Science, Wizardology, Games and Fairy Tales!
21st and Spruce, Florence
Readers
Choice
Favorite
Preschool
2016!
Meggan Haslett, Director
541-603-1562
Week: 0.15”
Year: 36.58”
Courtesy of Roger Cunningham
Deadlines for press
releases and news
items are Mondays and
Thursdays at noon.
pressreleases@thesiuslawnews.com
1
ed # r
Vot oome s
er
Gr
Pet Read
6
201 hoice
C
Open Tues - Sat 9am - 5 pm
1751 12th Street, Florence
541-997-2726
GYPSY
WIND
CLOTHING CO.
Grand Opening
& Chocolate Party
Please Join Us on
Saturday, May 14th from 10 am - 4pm
Join us!
✔
✔
✔
✔
Come to the celebration and enjoy
GOOD CHOCOLATE,
BEAUTIFUL CLOTHING
and Accessories!
We carry clothing sizes from Small to 3X.
We will be having booths, demonstrations, and tours
of our facilities and equipment.
We look forward to meeting you!
Certifi ed car seat technicians on hand for checkups
and car seats in stock.
We are located at 179 Laurel St.
Old Town 1/2 block of Bay Street
behind h e Bridgewater Restaurant
Bicycle helmets will be available
Free hot dogs and hamburgers
May 15, 2016 12-3pm
410 9 th St. Florence, Oregon
541-997-9614
www.westernlaneambulance.com
“Clothin
g for
whereve
r th
winds of e
life
take you
!”
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
2 A