Blanche "Bea" E. Phippen

Blanche "Bea" E. Phippen, 90, formerly of Wallowa County, died July 21 of natural causes. At Bea's request, there will be no formal services.

Blanche was born Jan. 25, 1920, to James and Ada (Norton) Bennett in Wallowa. She lived in Wallowa for a time, and then the family moved to Minam where she attended a one-room school house with her two brothers, Jess and Pug, and her three sisters, Gen, Hazel and Skip.

Her family says this was one of Bea's happiest times of her life. They swam in the Minam River, fished, hunted and played baseball at recess. Even the teacher played and it was a very competitive game.

As time moved on, she attended Elgin High School and later married Charles Doyle Phippen. They had no children and she began life as a military wife of an Air Force officer. She lived in the Phillipines, Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, Goose Bay, Labrador, and finally settled in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, with her husband. Two of her sisters lived nearby.

Bea loved the outdoors. She was an avid hunter and fisherwoman. She liked to flash the photo of her big buck to the men and rub it in. She skied, hiked, swam, camped and rode her Indian motorcycle. She even played on a curling team while living in Goose Bay. The team won the championship one year. She always regretted not learning how to play golf.

She liked to paint, but her passion was ceramics, which she won awards for. She could also yodel.

She was a life member of the Order of Eastern Star, Daughters of the Nile and later, the Lady Shriners.

Bea loved big family gatherings. She would attend every family reunion she could and hosted gatherings at her own home in Coeur d'Alene.

She is survived by her sister, Hazel (Reed) Wing of Redmond; and many niece, nephews and cousins.

In lieu of flowers or cards, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to hospice, Shriners Hospital for Children or the Humane Society.

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