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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (April 19, 2023)
TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 19, 2023 The Official Newspaper of the City of Heppner and the County of Morrow nephews. Heppner Memorial contributions for those who wish may be made to the Morrow Coun- U.S.P.S. 240-420 ty Farm Museum, PO Box Morrow County’s Home-Owned Weekly Newspaper 515, Heppner, OR 97836. SEARCH OLD COPIES OF THE HEPPNER GAZETTE-TIMES ON-LINE: Sweeney Mortuary of Hep- pner is in charge of arrange- http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/ ments. You may sign the Published weekly by Sykes Publishing and entered as periodical matter at the Post Office at Heppner, Oregon under the Act of March 3, 1879. Periodical postage paid online condolence book at at Heppner, Oregon. Office at 188 W. Willow Street. Telephone (541) 676-9228. Fax www.sweeneymortuary. (541) 676-9211. E-mail: editor@rapidserve.net or david@rapidserve.net. Web site: com. www.heppner.net. Postmaster send address changes to the Heppner Gazette-Times, Obituaries GAZETTE-TIMES P.O. Box 337, Heppner, Oregon 97836. Subscriptions: $35 in Morrow County; $40 senior rate (in Morrow County only; 65 years or older); $30 elsewhere; $35 student subscriptions. Chris Sykes ...............................................................................................Publisher Andrea Di Salvo ............................................................................................ Editor Cindi Doherty.........................................................................................Advertising All News and Advertising Deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. For Advertising: advertising deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Cost for a display ad is $5.50 per column inch. Cost for classified ad is 50¢ per word. Cost for Card of Thanks is $15 up to 100 words. Cost for a classified display ad is $6.00 per column inch. For Public/Legal Notices: public/legal notices deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Dates for publi- cation must be specified. Affidavits must be requested at the time of submission. Affidavits require three weeks to process after last date of publication (a sooner return date must be specified if required). For Obituaries: Obituaries are published in the Heppner GT at no charge and are edited to meet news guidelines. Families wishing to include information not included in the guidelines or who wish to have the obituary written in a certain way must purchase advertising space for the obituary. For Letters to the Editor: Letters to the Editor MUST be signed by the author. The Heppner GT will not publish unsigned letters. All letters MUST include the author’s address and phone number for use by the GT office. The GT reserves the right to edit letters. The GT is not responsible for accuracy of statements made in letters. Any letters expressing thanks will be placed in the classifieds under “Card of Thanks” at a cost of $10. Obituaries Gary Lee Nolan Gary Lee Nolan 73, of Lex- ington passed a w a y peace- f u l l y in his garden swing at his home on Wednesday, March 22, 2023. A memo- rial service will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 22, 2023, at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 2260 NE 4 th Street, Herm- iston, OR. He was born in Grand Coulee, WA to William and Donna Belle Nolan on Dec. 24, 1949. Gary grew up on a farm in Hermiston, OR and graduated from Hermiston High School in 1968. On April 1, 1972, Gary married the love of his life, Heather. They started their family in Hermiston. He moved his family to Lexington in 1976, where he worked at Kinzua Lumber Mill until the plywood plant ceased operation, after which he worked at Pioneer Memo- rial Hospital for over 20 years. He later owned and operated his janitorial busi- ness until retirement. Gary will be deeply missed by all who knew him. He will be remem- bered by family as a loving husband, a dedicated loving father who was always there when you needed him, a reliable brother who always made you feel spe- cial, and a kind-hearted, loving and fun grandfather. In addition to spending time with his family and friends, he enjoyed cultivating his garden, assembling puzzles, relaxing with his pets, and collecting Mickey Mouse memorabilia. He was a deeply spiri- tual man and used his time and his understanding of Bible truth to teach others. Gary expressed his unshak- able faith in Jehovah God and his hope of promised resurrection on paradise earth where tears, death and pain will be no more (John 5:28, 29; Revelation 21:4). Gary is survived by his sister, Sharon; His wife, Heather; his seven chil- dren, Jonathan, Timothy, Anthony, Tamar, Charles, Nathanael and Daniel; 16 grandchildren, Meghan, Taylor, Keiran, Kianna, Anthony Ryder, Liam, Rox- ann, Kylie, Sage, Avi, Cesar Alexander, Zeus, Loghan, Jeffrey, Zeruiah and Sim. He is also survived by one great-grandchild, Sylas. Memorial contributions may be made to Watchtow- er Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., Attn: Donor Support, 900 Red Mills Road, Wallkill, NY, US 12589-5200, or Donate. JW.org. Sweeney Mortuary of Heppner is in care of ar- rangements. You may sign the online condolence book at www.sweeneymortuary. com. Vilas Daniel Ropp Vilas Daniel Ropp, 65, of Lexing- ton died S u n d a y, March 26, 2023, at his home outside of Lex- ington. A private graveside service was held at the Lexington Cemetery. A memorial ser- vice will be held at a later date. He was born August 23, 1957, in Albany, OR to Daniel and Irva Roth Ropp, the third of six children. His father worked as a grass seed cleaner whose job took the family to Klamath Falls, OR when Vilas was in the fifth or sixth grade. His dad’s poor health took the family to live on the Or- egon Coast when Vilas was in high school. He attended Taft High School in Lincoln City. While in high school, Vilas bought a fishing boat and started commercial fishing out of Depoe Bay. Vilas married Deb Majes- ke on April 2, 1977, in Heppner. While living at the coast, Vilas and Deb had two daughters, Linsey Marie in 1979 and Ashley Deb in 1981. In 1982 the couple moved to Lexington, where Vilas began farming with his father-in-law, Gene Majeske, and they have resided there since. Vilas didn’t know a stranger and, as one of his grandsons said, carried on the funni- est conversations. He had many hobbies, hunting and fishing being among his favorites. He loved spend- ing time with family and always offered advice and experience whenever and wherever needed. He was preceded in death by his parents, Dan and Irva; his in-laws, Gene and Ally Majeske; and his in- fant sister, Maryetta Ropp. Survivors include his wife of 46 years, Deb; his daugh- ter Linsey Kellogg (Bran- don); grand-daughter Tate- lynn Kellogg of Pendleton; daughter Ashley Lindsay (Dan); grandkids, Paul, John, Claire, Max, Lucy, Kenny and Lauren Lind- say of Lexington; siblings, Gene Ropp (Jennifer) of McMinnville, Merve Ropp of Albany, Mavis Peterson (Joe) of Salem and Larry Ropp (Nelda) of Bend; and numerous nieces and Linda Ellen (Smith) Wilhelm Linda Ellen (Smith) Wilhelm, 65, of Lexing- ton, OR passed a w a y f r o m cancer surrounded by her family at her daughter’s home in Irrigon on Thursday, April 6, 2023. A celebration of life with close family will be held at the beach. She was born Feb. 22, 1958, in Burns, OR to par- ents Howard and Ernestine Smith. Linda grew up on a ranch along Willow Creek and graduated from Arling- ton High School. She married her high school sweetheart Ronald “Ron” Wilhelm on July 30, 1977, in Pendleton, OR. They bought a home in Lex- ington soon after, and that is where they raised their four children: Damien, Saman- tha, Rhonda and Veronica. Linda loved her family and friends more than any- thing. Her most treasured times were making mem- ories and spending time with them. She was pas- sionate about the outdoors and loved being in nature, which included camping, the beach, gardening, mush- room hunting, spending time in the mountains, time around the campfire and thunderstorms on a warm summer night. She enjoyed coloring, reading, listening to classic rock music and absolutely loved watching all things WWE. Survivors include her husband of 46 years, Ron; her son, Damien Wilhelm of Lexington; daughters, Samantha Linkel (Sean) of Hermiston, Rhonda Acock (Zac) of Irrigon and Veron- ica Wilhelm of Portland; three grandsons, Zane, Ja- cob and Trew; two grand- daughters, Ali and Zoey; two sisters, Peggy and Cin- da; and a brother, Whit. Linda is preceded in death by her parents, How- ard and Ernestine Smith. Memorial contributions can be made to Pioneer Me- morial Hospice, PO Box 97, Heppner, OR 97836. Sweeney Mortuary of Heppner is in charge of ar- rangements. You may sign the online condolence book at www.sweeneymortuary. com. Rea retires from IRFD board Red and Gena Leonard Foundation seeking applicants The Red and Gena Leonard Foundation is ac- cepting scholarship appli- cations from students who will graduate this year or have graduated in the past or obtained a GED from Arlington, Boardman, Con- don, Echo, Fossil, Heppner, Hermiston, Ione, Irrigon, Monument, Pendleton, Pi- lot Rock, Spray, Stanfield, Ukiah or Umatilla high schools. Students must attend an accredited college, uni- versity, community col- lege, vocational, trade or technical program based in Oregon; exceptions may be made if the training they seek is not offered in Oregon. It is the intent of the Red and Gena Leonard Foundation to benefit aver- age students of good char- acter with poor financial circumstances who have a desire to seek further educational opportunities but who, due to their lack of scholastic performance, have limited ability to re- ceive scholarships. In the selection pro- cess, priority will be given to students who: are not at the top academically; have limited financial resources; show the ability to be or become upstanding citi- zens; and have an interest in a trade or blue-collar type profession. Gena Leonard was a nurse by trade; to honor her, the foundation also would like to offer scholarships to students attending nursing school or other medical-related fields. Preference in reading applications is given to students seeking a degree or certificate in an ag or trade program; however, the foundation gives schol- arships to students seeking a variety of degrees/certif- icates. Applicants do not have to be current high school graduates. The foundation has a strong interest in help- ing adults return to school for education or additional training to better their po- sition in the workplace and the community. Since it began award- ing scholarships, the Red and Gena Leonard Foun- dation has awarded 3,017 scholarships totaling $6.1 million dollars all to local students. Applications may be obtained on our website at http://www.leonardfounda- tion.org, from high school counselors, at BMCC or by contacting Tracy Gammell at rglfoundation@qwest- office.net. The deadline to submit an application is April 30. For more information contact Tracy Gammell, Executive Director, PO Box 1024, Hermiston, OR 97838 or email rglfounda- tion@qwestoffice.net. Neighborhood Center to hold weekly bag sales through May The Neighborhood Center has announced that from now through the end of May, bag sales will be held every Friday in order to clear out existing inven- tory. The Neighborhood Center will not be accept- ing thrift store donations for the near future but will still accept donations of food for the food pantry. Through the month of April, the center will be closed on Mondays and will open at 10:30 a.m. rather than 9:30 a.m. on other scheduled days. For more information, contact interim coordinator Kelly Fritz at the Neighbor- hood Center. PORT OF MORROW COMMISSIONER Committed to: ✔ Transparency and Accountability ✔ Responsible Economic Growth ✔ County-wide Representation Paid for by Murray for POM Commission Equipment Purchases • Operating Lines Let’s Prepare for a New Season! See Amber for Equipment Purchases and Operating Lines of Credit. AMBER SCHLAICH 270 N. Main Street / Heppner (541) 676-9125 Ag/Commercial Loan Officer Ione Rural Fire Department chairman Joe McElligott (right) presents a plaque to retiring board member Keith Rea in gratitude for his 14 years serving on the IRFD board. -Photo by Anne Morter SPECIALIZING IN AGRICULTURAL & COMMERCIAL LOANS MEMBER FDIC
