Obituary of Daniel F. O'Bannon

Daniel Francis O’Bannon Born February 5, 1928 Died October 17, 2009 Daniel Francis (Danny) O’Bannon died Saturday evening, October 17, 2009 at Providence St. Peter’s Hospital in Olympia after a brief illness. Dan was born on February 5, 1928 in Olympia, Washington to Zoa Junod O’Bannon and Edward Cort O’Bannon, a top salesman for Tacoma Outfitters. Daniel was the youngest of their three sons. His older brothers were Edward (now deceased) and James, who currently lives in San Jose CA. The O’Bannons first settled with Gena Johnson Sumner and her three daughters (Ann, Mildred, and Norma) in a house just south of Tenino. This was the beginning of the extended family that still lives on today through their collective offspring. Dan attended all 12 years of school in Tenino. While a student at Tenino High School, he played on both the football and baseball teams. From the age of 15 Dan also worked, after school and summers, for local grocery store operator, Lloyd Axtell, to earn extra money for his family. At Axtell’s, Danny learned the meat cutter’s trade, later going on to perfect these skills. Turning in a new direction after graduation in 1947, Dan traveled to Northern California and worked at a variety of jobs. When he returned to Tenino, Dan took a hiatus from his career to contribute to the defense of his country by joining the United States Army and served with the WWII occupied forces in Japan. Dan also was part of the ground forces in the Korean War, during which time he was awarded several citations and medals for distinguished service, having safely guided his patrol back to the American side after they were caught behind enemy lines. Earning honorable discharge from the military, Dan came back to Tenino and worked in the logging industry. At this time Dan met Marlys Evelyn Cook. Dan then resumed cutting meat in a grocery store in Chehalis, later switching to Mc Clain’s in Tenino where he worked for the next two decades. Dan and Marlys married in 1955 and had two children, Kitty Ann and Patrick Daniel. The couple raised their family together and then made the decision to pursue separate interests in 1978. After the closure of McLain’s grocery store in 1974, Dan was hired by a local logging firm, Lee Cox, reporting directly to the owner. Dan worked with Lee until he retired in 1992. Dan had also started and successfully maintained a home meat cutting business for over 25 years. Over the years, Dan joined the local chapters of several national clubs, becoming a member of the Lions, Eagles, and Elks. He was especially proud of his membership in the Tenino branch of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). Dan was also a coach for Tenino Little Baseball in its early years. While he was a member of the Lions Club, Dan could frequently be found at their summer outings, manning one of the grills and turning out delicious steaks, hamburgers, hot dogs, and lobsters that everyone enjoyed. Dan was part of the volunteer Fire Department for Tenino until he sustained a back injury during a fire emergency that brought his stint to a close. A robust man of considerable talents Dan was rightfully proud of building his own home, where he and Marlys raised their family and where Dan lived to the end of his life. He laid the foundation in the summer of 1964, doing most of the labor himself with Marlys helping him, and contributions from Jack and Steve Conly, Ben Dodge (Ann Sumner’s husband), Dan’s brother Jim, and a few other friends. Dan built the house of his dreams in his spare time after work and on weekends. One and one half years after the start of construction, the O’Bannon family moved in just in time to celebrate Christmas 1965 in their new home – a remarkable achievement. One of Dan’s lifelong hobbies was gardening, and soon vegetable and flowerbeds appeared around the yard. One spring, Dan could be seen busily constructing his own flower boxes to hang from the eaves encircling the house as soon as the last frost melted on the warm ground. Beautiful fuchsias contributed their cheerful bursts of color. Dan also saw to it that a handcrafted planter fashioned to resemble a wooden wheelbarrow was filled with flowers, and delivered to Gena, who lived across the road. Dan did something extra special every year for Gena, who was his second mother when Dan was growing up among the Sumner/Conly family. Partial to rhododendrons and primroses as well, Dan eventually had a large garden on the property in which he grew everything from corn, to green beans, to potatoes, lettuce, strawberries, and raspberries, complementing that bounty with an array of fruit trees. The entire family took part in the yearly ritual of preparing the ground, weeding and ultimately, canning fruit. There they sat, on the patio that Dan built at the rear of the house, snapping green beans and shelling peas for dinner. Dan was known for his generosity, not just with his produce but also with his home, hosting gatherings for festivities and occasionally reaching out to his many friends by giving them a place to stay when they needed it, and enjoying their company in the process. Dan is survived by his daughter Kitty and her husband Al (San Diego); his son Pat and partner Liz (Los Angeles); his ex-wife Marlys (Tacoma), brother Jim (San Jose); his nephews Jim Jr. (Philippines) and Dan (Sacramento); and his niece, Anne (San Jose). Dan is survived as well by the extended family of Steve and Karol Conly (Olympia); Brad and Sarah Conly (Tenino); Nickie Empens (Olympia); Laura and Dave Andersen (Olympia); Carrie and Greg Andersen (Puyallup), Marty Van Scyoc (Tacoma), and Jason and Christine Zimmerman (Tenino). We will all miss him. You may leave memories and condolences by clicking on "View Guestbook" below.