The Enterprise - White Salmon, Washington

Obituaries

Death notices for Betty Beeks, Charles Sawyer and Rebecca Snow

March 05, 2013

Betty D. Beeks passed away in Hood River, Ore., on Feb. 25, 2013, at the age of 79. She was born in St. Helens, Ore., on Feb. 16, 1934, to Evelena (Skinner) and Darwin P. Usher.

On Dec. 28, 1953, Betty married Calvin N. Beeks in Goldendale. Mrs. Beeks was a member of the Church of Christ.

She loved watching her grandchildren and going to their sporting events, gardening, huckleberry picking and telling stories.

Mrs. Beeks is survived by her husband Calvin N. Beeks of Goldendale; son Calvin N. Beeks, Jr. of Goldendale; daughter Cathy Biber of Glenwood; brother Robert Usher of Culver, Ore.; 13 grandchildren; 23 great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

Preceding her in death were her parents Darwin and Evelena Usher, son William R. Beeks and brother William R. Usher.

A graveside service will be held at Pleasant Valley Cemetery in Goldendale on Saturday, March 9, 2013, at 11 a.m.

Columbia Hills Memorial Chapel handled cremation arrangements.

Charles Gerald Sawyer, 75, died Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013, following a long illness with Alzheimer's.

Preceded in death by his wife of 33 years, Honey (Tulina) Sawyer, he leaves his son Jeffrey Sawyer (Yohanna), daughter Susan Sawyer (Joanne), daughter Sharon Cherry (Kevin), grandchildren Alexandra and Andrew Sawyer of New Jersey, India Honey and Jessen James Shogo Cherry of Kill Devil Hills, N.C., brothers Ira Sawyer and Elzie Richard (Shirley) Sawyer of Vancouver, sister Betty (Jack) Huskey of Mosier, Ore., and sister Mary (Harold) Mitchell of Ava, Mo.

Born on Sept. 4, 1937 to Houston and Helen Lenona Sawyer in Ventura, Calif., Chuck spent most of his childhood being raised in the Snowden area, not far from the banks of the great Columbia River. After attending the Mount Brook School in Snowden, he entered the U.S. Navy, where he traveled extensively throughout the world. After spending time at naval stations in both Norfolk, Va., Philadelphia, Pa., he met his wife Honey Tulina and they were married in Philadelphia on April 5, 1958.

Eventually settling in the town of Sewell, N.J., Chuck and Honey raised their three children and often served as coaches or helped with their three children's school and athletic activities. Chuck would often fly out to Florida on business in the morning, and return before 6 p.m. the same day just in time to line the baseball fields in Sewell.

While taking classes through the University of Washington and the University of Pennsylvania, he was able to develop a number of fabrication manufacturing clients and eventually was awarded contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense, various energy producing clients such as Raytheon, General Electric and Foster Wheeler Energy. At the height of his career, he employed over 100 people between his two manufacturing operations in Chester, Pa., and Canton, Ohio.

In the early 1990s, Chuck began to spend considerable time in the Washington D.C., area and became active in supporting conservative causes he believed in and working closely with Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (Kansas.) and Senator Don Nichols (Okla.). He also became a founding member of the Ronald Wilson Reagan Republican Center in Washington, D.C.

Chuck also was an advocate and supported extensively the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation culminating in the building of the Ambassador Auditorium, a world renowned concert venue in Southern California. The building is still known today as the Carnegie Hall of the west. He also strongly supported Ambassador University in both Texas and California, where his children were able to attend and participate in collegiate athletics.

His greatest loves in life, however, was the time spent with his wife Honey, his three children and grandchildren both in New Jersey and the Outer Banks, N.C., and his family reunions spent with his brothers and sisters in the great Pacific Northwest.

Rebecca Elaine Snow, 40, succumbed to a sudden cardiac arrest on Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013, while visiting her dad in White Salmon.

She was born to father Roger Stanton Snow and mother Linda Joy Hardie on Dec. 29, 1972 in The Dalles, Ore. She lived her early days in Wamic and Mosier; later sharing her time between Portland and White Salmon; most recently living in Salem with partner Shane Sexton.

Becky to family or Becca to those she met later in life enjoyed hiking, fishing, camping, horseback riding. In grade school she was Northwest Pee Wee Rodeo Queen. As an adult she worked with the mentally challenged and disabled as a teacher's aide for special education children in the Multnomah County School District.

Becca was a woman who loved with all her heart; she was a compassionate and gentle soul. Her smile brightened up any room she walked into and she made an impact on any and all people she met. Once she met someone, they never forgot her. She was a lover of animals and will be missed by her dog, Mr. Man. Whenever she saw an animal on the side of the road, to her they were just sleeping as she could not imagine them otherwise.

She will be forever cherished by her partner, Shane Sexton; father Roger Snow; mother Linda Hardie and her husband Ron Hardie; sister Angela Snow-Decker and brother-in-law, Chris Decker and her two nieces Aleyah and Jesara.

A celebration of her short life was held on Feb. 18, 2013, from 2 to 5 p.m. at the McMenamin's Edgefield in Troutdale.

Donations can be made in her name to the Humane Society of the United States.