June 10, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 5A
OBITUARIES
Gregory Kershul
Shirley Aline Backus
Charles Horsley
May 9, 1925 — June 6, 2016
April 14, 1930 — June 1, 2016
Dec. 7, 1951 — May 24, 2016
Gregory Kershul, 91, of
Seaside, died Monday, June 6,
2016, in Seaside. He was born
May 9, 1925, in Anaconda,
Montana, the son of Joseph and
Josephine (Africh) Kershul.
He graduated from Anacon-
da High School in 1943, and
served in the Army Air Force,
117th AACS SQD for three
years during World War II in
the European and Mediterra-
nean theaters. He graduated
from the University of Mon-
tana with a degree in business
organization and management.
On June 17, 1947, he mar-
ried Patricia L. Lavin from
Conrad, Montana. They moved
to Dallas, Oregon, in 1950 and
operated the Majestic and Rio
Theaters. In 1952, Greg be-
came the manager of the Park
Plaza Apartments in Portland,
Oregon.
In 1954 he and Pat moved
to Seaside, where he managed
a private fi sh hatchery on the
North Fork of the Necanicum
River. In 1955, they purchased
the Sunset Drive-in Theater in
Gearhart, Oregon, and in 1959,
purchased the Times Theater in
Seaside, Oregon.
He was a member of the
Sunset Empire Amateur Radio
Club, a lifetime member of the
University of Montana Alumni
Association, a lifetime member
of the Seaside Elks Lodge No.
1748, a member of the Amer-
ican Legion Post No. 99 for
62 years, and a member of the
American Relay League, ama-
teur call sign K7OKL.
He was chief photographer
for the Seaside Police Depart-
ment from 1988 to 1994, and
a lifelong active outdoorsman.
He was very happy to have
a street named after him in
Shirley Aline Riley Back-
us, a lifetime resident of Sea-
side and recently residing at
Regent Court Memory Care
Center in Corvallis, Oregon,
passed away on June 1 at the
age of 86.
She was born on April 14,
1930, in Oakland, California,
the daughter of the late Edward
R. Riley and Geneva Duncan
Riley of Seaside, Oregon. She
is survived by her husband,
Gouverneur “Chuck” Backus
of Seaside, Oregon; two sons,
Guy E. Backus of Salem, Or-
egon, and Charles S. Backus
of Seaside, Oregon; and one
daughter, Tara B. Ruth and her
husband, Dennis, of Corvallis,
Oregon.
She attended Seaside
Union High School. She met
Chuck when he was stationed
at the Naval Station Tongue
Point, Astoria. They married
on Dec. 25, 1948, in Medford,
Oregon, and were wed for
over 67 years. She was a re-
silient Navy wife and mother,
enduring numerous separa-
tions and several household
relocations that included a
period of living in Japan at the
Yokosuka Naval Base.
In 1965, the family settled
in Seaside. She worked at Fort
Stevens State Park, and then
helped build and operate their
family-owned kennel board-
ing business on U.S. Highway
101 for many years. She also
worked part-time in the cafete-
rias at Seaside High and Mid-
dle school. She was a mem-
ber of the Seaside Moose and
Seaside American Legion Post
99 Ladies Auxiliary, and held
numerous positions in each or-
ganization.
She was the oldest of seven
children, and was preceded in
death by her brother, Edward
C. Riley Jr.; and her sisters,
Donna Jean, Edith Ceita,
Mary Louise and Frances El-
len Riley, who were tragically
killed in a house fi re in 1945
in Seaside.
She is survived by her
brother, and sole surviving
family member, John C. Riley
Gregory Kershul
Gearhart, Oregon — Kershul
Circle. His experience of a life-
time was riding in the cockpit
of the Concorde supersonic
airplane between New York
and London, arranged for him
by his daughter, Kris.
His wife Pat predeceased
him on Sept. 10, 1994. Survi-
vors include his children, Kris-
tine Kershul of Seattle, Wash-
ington, Bill and Dee Kershul of
Colbert, Washington, and Patty
(Kershul) and Mark Bowman
of Beaverton, Oregon; grand-
children Cassandra (Bowman)
Stone and Blake Bowman of
Beaverton; as well as nieces
and nephews in Illinois, Idaho,
Connecticut, and Colorado. A
brother, Dr. Victor W. Kershul,
preceded him in death in 2009.
He had a very dear companion,
Lennice Nichols of Gearhart,
Oregon.
A memorial service is to be
held at Our Lady of Victory
Catholic Church in Seaside on
Friday, June 17, at 11 a.m.
Hughes-Ransom Mortuary
& Crematory in Astoria is in
charge of the arrangements. Go
to www.hughes-ransom.com
to share memories and sign the
guest book.
Death Notice: Jennifer Wilson
WILSON, Jennifer Louise, 35, of Warrenton, died in Port-
land. She was 35. Hughes-Ransom Mortuary & Crematory in
Astoria is in charge of arrangements. Go to www.hughes-ran-
som.com to share memories and sign the guest book
Death Notice: Marguerite Reed
Marguerite Reed, 97, of Seaside, died on May 26, 2016 in
Seaside. Ocean View Funeral & Cremation Services of Astoria
Shirley Backus
of Portland, Oregon; and three
cousins, nieces and nephews.
Surviving grandchildren are
Becky L. Hagan of Weiser,
Idaho; Charles E. Backus and
his wife, Stephanie of New
Plymouth, Idaho; Melissa
A. Barnes and her husband,
William, of Lincoln City,
Oregon; Jessica M. Martin
and her husband, Jeffery, of
Phoenix, Arizona; and Karen
Dow and her husband, Jus-
tin, of Portland, Oregon. Her
seven
great-grandchildren
are Chelsie Backus, Cam-
eron M. Pierce, Jasmine E.
Hust, Alexandria L. Martin,
Liam O. Barnes, Reagan K.
Dow, and Kevin C. Dow. Her
great-grandson, Erik M. Mar-
tin, preceded her in death.
She enjoyed craft and
sewing activities, gardening,
square dancing, reading, play-
ing cards and board games. Al-
though dementia suppressed
remembrances of many events
of her lifetime the past few
years, there was still clarity of
special events and people that
she would readily talk about.
Memorial donations may
be made to the Alzheimer’s
Association Oregon, 1650
N.W. Naito Parkway, Suite
190, Portland, OR 97209, or
to Moose Charities, 155 S. In-
ternational Drive, Mooseheart,
IL 60539.
There will be no ser-
vice, and burial will be at the
convenience of the family.
Hughes-Ransom Mortuary
& Crematory in Astoria is in
charge of the arrangements.
Chuck Horsley, 64, passed
away May 24, 2016, sur-
rounded by his family. Chuck
will live on at his favorite
place, the ocean.
Chuck was born in Chica-
go on Dec. 7, 1951. He grew
up in Santa Cruz, California,
where he started working at
the age of 15. When he wasn’t
working or going to school, he
loved playing sports including
baseball, surfi ng and volley-
ball. He also managed to be
crowned Homecoming King
… twice; he was a busy guy!
When Chuck left Santa
Cruz, he couldn’t leave the
ocean behind, but preferred to
share the beach with less peo-
ple, so he moved to the sleepy
town of Astoria. Chuck lived
the rest of his life in Astoria,
where he raised two daughters
and touched countless lives
with his giving, loving and
community-minded nature.
Although Chuck was a
self-proclaimed “surfer,” he
had an unrivaled work eth-
ic. Chuck was known for his
ability to work as hard as he
could to make sure the job
was done well, and his family
was provided for. Chuck was
a man of his word, and made
good on every promise he
could. Chuck was also a stub-
born man, and a force to be
reckoned with. Luckily, once
Charles Horsley
Chuck considered you family,
you forever had him on your
team.
Some of Chuck’s favorite
things to do included spend-
ing time with his family, his
Thursday night get-togethers
with friends, going to his fa-
vorite beach and riding his
bike at Fort Stevens. He loved
Astoria so much, and referred
to it as his “God’s Country.”
Chuck is survived by his
daughters, Caitlin and Nicole
Horsley, as well as the love of
his life, Stephanie Kefauver.
Chuck’s family is plan-
ning a celebration of life on
Saturday, June 18, at the As-
toria Masonic Center, at 1572
Franklin Ave. Doors will open
at 11:30 a.m., and the program
will begin at 12 p.m. Light re-
freshments will be provided.
Obituary Policy
The Seaside Signal publishes paid obituaries. The obituary can include a small photo
and, for veterans, a fl ag symbol at no charge. The deadline for all obituaries is 9 a.m.
the business day prior.
Obituaries may be edited for spelling, proper punctuation and style. Death notices
and upcoming services will be published at no charge. Notices must be submitted by 9
a.m. the day of publication.
Obituaries and notices may be submitted online at www.dailyastorian.com/forms/
obits, by email at ewilson@dailyastorian.com, placed via the funeral home or in person
at The Daily Astorian offi ce, 949 Exchange St. in Astoria. For more information, cal 503-
325-3211, ext. 257.
BUSINESS
DIRECTORY
F LOORING
Customer service pays off when
attracting year-round visitors
I
t goes without saying that
Seaside is a community
that relies heavily on tour-
ism. According to GIS data
from the Oregon Employment
Department, the percentage
of employment in the leisure
and hospitality industry is 25
percent for Clatsop County
and 43 percent for Seaside
alone. Of the 3,551 jobs noted
in payroll records for Seaside,
1,521 work in leisure and hos-
pitality. The total wages for
these tourism jobs is nearly
$34 million annually. The
impact this sector has is pretty
obvious.
With those fi gures in mind,
stop and think about your feel-
ings on customer service. What
happens when you have a
great experience? Chances are,
you likely return to that place
for a future business transac-
tion. Whether it was a meal,
clothing item or type of service
rendered, if they aren’t the only
option you have — and they
performed well — you will
likely go back.
Now fl ip that the other
way. You just experienced
extremely poor service. The
details will likely stay with
you for quite some time, and
if there are other options in
town, you might never go
back, or at least go a long
time between visits to that
particular business. Studies
also show that we tell more
people about our bad experi-
ences than our good ones.
These examples are the
very reasons that the City of
Seaside Visitors Bureau feels
so passionately about good
customer service and why
for the third consecutive year
we’ve offered our Annual
Customer Service Program as
a way for businesses to volun-
teer their establishment to be
“secret shopped.” The busi-
ness provides the desire to
see how they stack up service
wise, and then we provide the
shoppers and a report on what
SIDE RAIL
JOHN RAHL
went well and what may need
some improvement.
In 2014, 10 businesses
signed up for the inaugu-
ral program. Last year, the
number of participants rose
to 16, while in 2016 we had
22 businesses raise their hand
and say, “tell me how we’re
doing.” We separate the busi-
ness into one of four sectors
(dining, lodging, attractions
and retail) and then send a
secret shopper to investigate
and engage in a transaction.
Year one of the program gen-
erated an 86 percent service
rating. In 2015, that rating
grew to 89 percent. This year,
we dipped to an 85 percent
rating.
Sector wise, our hotels are
performing best and came
in with a 98 percent rating.
Attractions performed to a 92
percent rating while dining
(82 percent) and retail (75
percent) rounded out the four
sectors. Each business is rated
on nine categories, including
items like store appearance,
staff attention, staff ap-
pearance, the greeting the
customer received, product
knowledge and whether or
not they would recommend
the business to a friend.
All individual businesses
that participate receive a de-
tailed report from their secret
shopper experience, and we
hope it’s a way to either main-
tain that excellent service they
are already giving or perhaps
use as a training tool for
their staff to improve. With
more than 40 percent of our
jobs depending on tourism
services, we can’t help but not
care about the power of good
service. Because, in the end,
the better service we all give,
the greater the experience
our visitors will have and the
more likely they will be to
return to Seaside for future
visits.
Have a thought or a ques-
tion about tourism in Seaside,
or maybe an idea for a future
column? Drop me an email at
jrahl@cityofseaside.us.
Jon Rahl is the director
of tourism for the Seaside
Visitors Bureau and assis-
tant general manager of the
Seaside Civic & Convention
Center.
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