>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

Varland, Wortman, Daggett, Kennedy, Smith, Zdeb

Paul Thomas Varland, 53, of La Grande, died at his residence Thursday. A Celebration of Life service will take place Tuesday beginning at 2 p.m. at Zion Lutheran Church in La Grande. Loveland Funeral Chapel and Crematory is handlling arrangements.

Fern Francis (Garrett ) Wortman, 82, of Redmond and formerly of Wallowa County, died March 28. A graveside remembrance service begins at 1 p.m. Aug. 9 at the Island City Cemetery. Redmond Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

Alta Mae (Reece) Daggett, 89, of Joseph, died July 28 at the Wallowa Valley Care Center. A private family service will be held at Prairie Creek Cemetery Saturday. Bollman Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Alta Mae was born April 29, 1919, to Wilbur McKinley Reece and Rilla Frances (Bonner) Reece in Enterprise. She graduated from Joseph High School in 1937. On May 4, 1940, she married Bee Daggett at Weiser, Idaho. He preceded her in death on April 15, 1993.

Alta was a homemaker, especially enjoying cooking and baking delicious goodies for family and friends. Those who knew her say she was a caring person who was loved by the many who knew her.

She was proud of the traditions and heritage that had been passed on from her parents. Her father, the late Wilbur M. Reece, was a former mayor of Joseph and one of the original founders of Chief Joseph Days. He was also the author of the famous “Welcome to Our Little Town” sign in Joseph.

She had been a resident of Wallowa Valley Care Center for three months.

She is survived by children, Chris and his wife, Diane Daggett, Vicky Yost Rice and her husband, Ron Rice of Redmond; three grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Rex Allen Kennedy, 47, of Elgin, died, July 30 in an ATV accident at Jubilee Lake. A celebration of life will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Elgin Community Center. Loveland Funeral Chapel and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.

Rex was born Jan. 7, 1961, to William Howard and Mildred Elizabeth (Phillips) Kennedy in La Grande. Rex was raised in Elgin and graduated from Elgin High School in 1979.

Rex served in the Air Force from 1979 to 1983. He worked as an electrician for a trailer manufacturer; for cable companies, trimming trees all over the United States; and he logged. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, camping, his family and friends and anything outdoors.

He is survived by his daughters, Chrissy Kennedy of Spokane, and Jennifer Kennedy of Pendleton; stepson Eric Collins of La Grande; Taucia Kennedy of Lewiston, Idaho; fiance, Sherry Schoenwald of Elgin; brothers, Richard Kennedy of Pendleton and David Kennedy of Elgin; sister, Barbara Prince of Kamiah, Idaho; three grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews. Rex was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Kenneth and Bruce Kennedy; sister, Joyce Beck; and nephew, Billy Kennedy.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.

Thomas Ira Smith, 93, of McMinnville and formerly of Elgin, died July 10 in McMinnville. Memorial services will begin at 1 p.m. Aug. 9 at the United Methodist Church at Fifth and Birch Street in Elgin. Autumn Crematorium in Tigard was in charge of arrangements.

Tom was born Sept. 22, 1914, to Ira Arthur and Henrietta Esther (Cruikshank) Smith in Gridley, Calif. The family soon moved to Elgin where Tom graduated from Elgin High School in 1932. Joining the Navy in November 1941, Tom served on a destroyer in the Pacific Ocean for the next four years. Tom reached the rate of chief petty officer before being discharged in November 1945. While on leave, he and Orlena Belle Roberts married in La Grande on March 17, 1945. They moved to San Diego for the balance of Tom’s enlistment.

The couple moved to Pendleton, living there from 1945 to 1956. They moved their family to Halfway until 1960. Eventually settling in Ontario, they raised four children while running the family electrical business.

Tom enjoyed hunting, camping and spending time with his wife and children in the outdoors. He learned to fly small aircraft. He and Orlena would fly back and forth visiting their children while they attended colleges in Eugene and Corvallis. They would frequently fly to McCall, Idaho, just for Sunday breakfasts. They also enjoyed traveling by car, exploring back roads throughout the western United States. He was a 50-year member of the Masonic Lodge in Ontario and a longtime supporter of the Shriner’s Children’s Hospital. In later years he was an avid reader, kept well supplied in books by his children.

Tom is survived by his children, Ira T. Smith of McMinnville, Robert J. Smith of Eugene, Ellen K. Fletcher of North Bend, Wash., and George W. Smith of Seneca, S.C.; sister, Marie Blanchard of Portland; brother, George Smith of Elgin; and six grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife of 59 years, Orlena Belle Smith.

Victor J. Zdeb, 61, died July 22 at Evergreen Healthcare. Loveland Funeral Chapel and Crematory is in charge of the arrangements.

Victor was born Dec. 30, 1946, in Germany. He immigrated to Chicago with his parents at the age of 5, earned his naturalization papers at 16, and attended four years of college at University of Illinois at Carbondale, where he discovered a passion for computers that would last all his life.

He was fascinated by technology even as a child and took great pleasure in fixing things. His mother remembers when, as a young boy of only 7, he took apart their first color TV while she was out. “It was a very large TV,” she recalls, “and there were lots of pieces. But I told him to put it back together, and he did. He could fix anything.”

Vic dabbled in many diverse careers before retiring to Hilgard with his wife of 35 years, taking a job as an electrician at Boise Cascade in 1997. Two years later he left Boise to pursue his dream of running his own business of repairing and building computers.

His zest for life, his kindness of heart and his generosity of spirit made friends of everyone he met, with whom he shared much pleasure hunting, fishing, picking huckleberries and philosophizing.

His courage, sense of humor and tremendous will to live won the admiration of the physicians, surgeons and other medical staff who battled for over two years to keep him alive.

His daughter Michelle says her father taught her how to view the world with an open mind and a critical eye. His eldest daughter Jennifer described her father as an intellect, enjoying chess or a lively debate. He was known for his love of music, nature and critters.

He is survived by his mother, Katherine; former wife, Anita, and their daughter Jennifer; three grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. He is also survived by wife, Cynthia; daughter, Michelle; son-in law, James Grana; two grandchildren; brother-in-law, Kris Syska; and two nephews. He was preceded in death by his father, John; granddaughter, Jenna; and sister, Julie.

Contributions for final expenses can be sent in care of Loveland Funeral Chapel at 1508 Fourth St. in La Grande.