Marion Louise Anthoney

Marion Louise Anthoney (Davee)(Norris) 91, passed away January 29,2018 at the home of her daughter following an extended illness. Her children were at her bedside.    Marion was born in 1926 in Lewiston, Idaho to parents Isabelle Edwards and William Davee. She lived in Lewiston until the age of 10 when her parents divorced and she went with her mother for a few years, ending up in Juneau, Alaska on a homestead for 2 years. Marion moved back to her father in Lewiston/Clarkston. Her father passed away when she was 16. She lived with family members until her graduation from Clarkston High School in 1944. She then moved to WallaWalla.    Marion had a love of flying since she was a young girl and her father would take her to the local airport on Sundays to watch the planes.  She took Private Pilots exams in high school. When she moved to WallaWalla, she went to work at the Army Air Corpse Base as an Engine Build-up mechanic on B-24 Bomber engines and as a radio mechanic on T-11 trainers and B-24 Bombers until cutbacks after the war ended in 1945.  In 1949 she married John Norris who was in the Air Force and they began a 17 year adventure with the military. They had two children, Christine and Jonathan.  The Air Force moved John and Marion to many interesting places including Japan and Guam.  John retired in 1966 and they moved to LaGrande to be near family.    Marion and John divorced in the early 1970's and she went to work for the State of Oregon in the Employment Office and later at Adult and Family Services. In the early 1980's, she was briefly married to Lloyd Anthoney. They had no children together and divorced after a couple of years. Marion retired from the State of Oregon in 1986. She briefly went to work for ODFW part-time after retirement.    Marion had many interests. She belonged to the  Civil Air Patrol, Great Decisions, Sweet Adelines singing group, Volksmarchers walking group, AARP, American Legion Auxillary, Eagles Lodge Auxillary, Trail Wenders walking group to name a few.    Marion loved to sing and had a beautiful voice. Her older twin sisters Doris and Dorothy and she were taught to sing by their mom. They had a trio and entertained at local shows, theaters and radio stations.  Their home was a gathering place for family and friends to come to sing and play.      Marion was very artistic. She enjoyed painting both oils and watercolor, knitting, crocheting, gardening, writing poems and songs.  She was an excellent seamstress and taught her daughter  Chris to sew. She loved to cook and made sure her family always had a good meal  filled with love.  She taught her children to cook. She encouraged them to explore cooking, art and music and was supportive of all of their creations.    Marion was an inventor. She always had a new project going to improve our lives.  She had an amazing enthusiasm for life and wanted to change our world for the better.  She stayed interested and informed about the state of our country and spent many hours writing and calling politicians about her concerns, letting them know her opinions of how things could be improved. She encouraged everyone around her to do the same, to get involved and make a difference.    Marion loved to explore.  She would plan family excursions at every new place they lived from the towns of Japan and beaches of Guam to the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone on trips across country as the military moved them from one Air Base to another.  Later in life, she traveled with family and friends around the Northwest. Some of her favorite places were the Oregon Coast, Sumpter, WallaWalla, Wallowa Lake, Boise, Clarkston and of course to visit family.    Marion was a wonderful, loving mother.  She had a happy heart and a wonderful smile and will be remembered for bringing joy and happiness to her family and to all who knew her. She was a kind and caring lady who wanted everyone around her to find the best life they could and enjoy their time on this earth.    Family and friends had a private viewing when she passed away. She requested to be cremated.     Marion was preceded in death by her parents, sisters Doris Lahti and Dorothy Bates, step-sisters Pat Treadwell and Shirley Magnaghi. She is survived by daughter Chris Norris, son Jon Norris, sister Doreen Linder and husband Del, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.    A memorial service will be held Saturday August 24th at 2pm at the Presbyterian Friendship Center, 1204 Spring Ave. LaGrande, Oregon.    Online condolences can be made at www.danielsknopp.com    Contributions can be made to:       Disabled American Veterans       P.O. Box 14301       Cincinnati, Ohio 45250-0301   or to:        LaGrande Animal Shelter        3212 Old Hwy 30        LaGrande, Oregon 97850 Reply Forward

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Memorial Service

Saturday, August 24, 2019
2:00 PM

Presbyterian Friendship Center
1204 Spring Avenue
La Grande, Oregon 97850