Obituary of Frank Eugene Moore

Frank Eugene Moore 2/10/1927 ~ 4/11/2008 Frank was born in Colfax, Washington to Ben and Bertha Moore. He was the youngest of four children. Three girls preceded Frank (I’ll bet his dad was glad to see him). The sisters are, Alice Eurane Moore Maxam, she is 95 and lives in Othello, Washington, Thelma Daphnia Moore Hanson, passed away in 2006, she lived in the Portland area, Ruth Ellen Moore Lowe, is the sister that was closest to Frank became his second mother, she is 89 and lives in Colfax. Frank as a boy and young man helped his father on the farm. The farm produced wheat and produce and had a lot of room for the horses and cows to graze. It was a hard time for farmers in the depression but Frank’s dad was so well thought of in the small community that his bank quite often carried him. The farm was a self-sustaining operation and a good place to be raised. As soon as Frank was able to walk, his dad assigned him his own horse, “Ole Pet”, by name, and he had his own little wagon to ride into town. If Frank fell asleep he would drop the reins and “Ole Pet” would take him home. It was not an easy life but Frank was secure and surrounded by love. In 1944 when Frank was 17 he (with his parent’s permission) joined the Navy. He did his boot camp in Farragut, Idaho. He was assigned to a ship that brought home the young men who had been wounded in the campaign that brought back to American control some of the islands that had been occupied by the Japanese. In 1948, after being discharged, he met and married Betty Chapman. In January 1949 Frank hired in at the Boeing Company and on April 8, 1949 he became the proud father of Marcella Ruth Moore. In September 1949, Frank had a run-in with a two-ton per square inch drop press. He was cleaning metal scraps off the press plate with his left hand when the press misfired and dropped on his hand. After being helped to remove his hand from the press plate, he found his hand could touch the floor and he didn’t even have to bend over. His wedding band was the size of a dinner plate. After twenty-seven operations he had his thumb and a surgically manufactured index finger. It never became a disability in Frank's lifetime. In August 1952 he married Rosie Greenlee. On April 2, 1954 Frank’s family became four instead of three with the arrival of Cathy Rose Moore. Frank worked for the Boeing Company for forty years having most of his jobs in the 50’s in the Seattle area. In the 60’s he and his family made the same move, as many Boeing people did at that time, and went to the field. The “field” for the uninitiated was composed of places like Great Falls, Montana, Minot, North Dakota, Sedalia, Missouri, then on to New Orleans. Frank did them all, some with his family and some without. You went where you were transferred and that was the way it was. Finally he got to go back home. He and Rosie divorced in 1977. He resided for the most part in the Seattle area and enjoyed being with his daughters and their growing families. Frank is survived by his two daughters, Marcella and Cathy plus 3 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren. In November 1994, he met Catherine Rogers and married in December of that year. When Frank married Catherine he became step-father to her three daughters, Lana, Chris and Terry plus 9 granchildren and 8 great grandchildren. He and Catherine were “snow-bunnies” living in Yuma, Arizona for five or six months each year then back to the Olympia area. In March of 2005 Catherine succumbed to a major coronary incident and Frank became a widower. In 2006 Frank had to have serious spinal surgery, he recovered well. Then in January 2007 he had a stroke while in Yuma and his health started taking a down-turn. The stroke was followed by numerous infections and in December 2007 the Dr.s’ found that Frank had a lymphoma over his right eye in the sinus cavity. He fought a brave fight but in April 2008 after losing 90 pounds his strength finally gave out. He was a very good and loving man and his life was his family and friends. He loved to laugh and he had a “pixie-ish” sense of humor. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him. Thank you Frank for bringing us eighty-one years of joy, laughter and love. We truly believe that He is caring for you ‘till we see you again. The pain is gone and you are safe at home with God – We send you our love.