June 2023 News

In this edition: Celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Garden Home Library, upcoming Board meetings, upcoming Fanno Creek History Walk.

Welcome to our website about historic Garden Home. In the People and Places pages, you’ll find well over two hundred stories, and over two thousand photos of vintage Garden Home and residents attending our events. To receive the free newsletter and email Updates, contact us at GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com or call Marie Pacella at 503-244-5758 or Elaine Shreve at 503-246-5879.

Upcoming events

Summer booth and banner

Garden Home History Project booth from pre-COVID days

2017 Ice Cream Social

 

The 40th Anniversary of our Garden Home Community Library will be celebrated on Saturday, June 3, 2023. Check out the details, outside attractions, maybe even goats??? And lots more. Our History people will also be participating since most of us volunteered to start the Library. Join us! We are so lucky to have our excellent Library! Come visit the Garden Home History Project’s table to play history spinner and enjoy an  ice cream cone!

Our next Board meeting will be 4:30 PM, June 12, 2023, location to be determined. We will be discussing plans for our fall meetings. Our meetings are open and all are invited. Please call Elaine Shreve at 503-246-5879 to arrange seating. The Garden Home History Project is a great way to get involved in your neighborhood!

Jan Fredrickson describing Firlock Station on the Fanno Creek Trail history walk, May 2022

Jan Fredrickson describing Firlock Station on the Fanno Creek Trail history walk, May 2022

The next guided Fanno Creek Trail History Walk will be in July, more details next email.

May Gazette

GHHP Gazette - May 2023

GHHP Gazette – May 2023

Click here to read the full Gazette (PDF). If you wish to receive the printed Gazette (3x a year) in addition to your email Gazette, send us your mailing address.

Garden Home News

We have some changes in our Board for our Garden Home History Project.
Mickey Mistler Lindsay is our new Chairperson, and Esta Mapes continues as our Vice-Chair. Susan Houseman is our new Treasurer. Marie Pacella will continue to keep up our 500 subscribers mailing list and send out our UPDATES and Gazettes. Stan Houseman leads our Century Homes program. Elaine Shreve will continue as Editor, doing interviews and publications. Interested in conducting interviews or writing? Email: GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com

Andrew Shreve presenting the Search for Cora

Andrew Shreve presenting the Search for Cora

Thanks to Andrew Shreve for his presentation The Search for Cora at our May 8th meeting at the Garden Home Recreation Center.

Remember!

Armed Forces Day in May is an annual observance dedicated to the brave individuals currently serving in the United States Armed Forces. This reminds us of the fighter plane crash in Garden Home. Review this surprising story about the 1944 Crash of Lt. Robert Strong’s P-63 Kingcobra fighter plane.

The Oregonian, June 14, 1944, page 1

Discover Garden Home!

Discover the changing display in our History Display Case in the Garden Home Library. We have featured Garden Home dairies, railroad, early history, Gerry Frank, the school, and many other subjects in our history. Please let us know if you have a history related item or collection we might display. Call Elaine Shreve, 503-246-5879.

2022-03 Display cabinet - Jerry Frank

2022-03 Display cabinet – Jerry Frank

2022-09 Display cabinet - School Days

2022-09 Display cabinet – School Days

Display case at Garden Home Library - vintage toys

Display case at Garden Home Library – vintage toys

Get Involved

Our Board of Directors continues their monthly meetings. Call to attend. Current subjects include displays in the Library and bulletin board, Century Homes program (we have some 39 Century Homes in Garden Home), Historic Garden Home street signs, new businesses, our newsletters, program planning with the Garden Home Library and more! More Garden Home History walking Tours. We welcome new volunteers to our committees; let us know your interest. Call Mickey at 503-805-5518 or Esta at 503-246-5758.

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022 crop

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022 crop

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street signs: We currently have over 40 of the Historic Garden Home street sign toppers in our community. Click here to view photos of the signs and for information about sponsoring a sign.

Our generous donors permit us to replace the Historic Garden Home street signs once for signs that disappear.

Posted in News | Leave a comment

April 2023 News

In this edition: The Search for Cora, celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Garden Home Library, Hyslin home, Pearson CENTURY HOME, Hansen house, visit with the children of Dorothy Johnson.

Welcome to our website about historic Garden Home. In the People and Places pages, you’ll find well over two hundred stories, and over two thousand photos of vintage Garden Home and residents attending our events. To receive the free newsletter and email Updates, contact us at GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com or call Marie Pacella at 503-244-5758 or Elaine Shreve at 503-246-5879.

Upcoming events

Join us for our first meeting since COVID at the Garden Home Recreation Center, our Board meeting, followed by the unique presentation by Andy Shreve. The Board was impressed with a shorter version!

The search for Cora

The Search for Cora: Monday, May 8th at 6:30 PM at the Garden Home Recreation Center, Room 9, presented by Andy Shreve. The surprising and tragic tale uncovered while searching for lost relatives. The Board of Directors will be meeting from 5 to 6:15 PM (all are welcome).

The 40th Anniversary of our Garden Home Community Library will be celebrated on Saturday, June 3, 2023. Check out the details, outside attractions, maybe even goats??? And lots more. Our History people will also be participating since most of us volunteered to start the Library. Join us! We are so lucky to have our excellent Library!

The next guided Fanno Creek Trail History Walk will be in July, more details next email.

Garden Home News

We visited with the Hyslin family at their large wooded property on Garden Home Road.

Zachary and Lee Hyslin in front of Grandmother Catherine Hyslin's portrait

Zak and Lee Hyslin in front of Grandmother Catherine Hyslin’s portrait

Hyslin side yard

Hyslin side yard

We recognized Bob Pearson’s 100 year old home in our Century Home Program.  He continues to meet all the challenges of repairing and improving his interesting home up Garden Home Road.

Bob Pearson and Stan Houseman with CENTURY HOMES plaque

Bob Pearson and Stan Houseman with CENTURY HOMES plaque

Bob Pearson and his home

Bob Pearson and his home

We have been consulting with Ross Fogelquist regarding our shared concern that the Hansen house on his property may be demolished. We appreciate when an older house is preserved and we are able to share its unique history.

Hansen House - Alta Hansen's original home

Hansen House – Alta Hansen’s original home

Ross Fogelquist inside Fogelbo

Ross Fogelquist inside Fogelbo

We hosted a visit in my home with the children of our Garden Home “Beauty Queen”, Dorothy Johnson, who died last year. Ward Nelson brought the famous organist daughter Dorothy Papadakos, her brother Peter Papadakos and his wife Barbara, and another brother Andrew White. Bob Day, Stan Houseman, Virginia Vanture, Mickey Lindsay and I enjoyed their visit and review of our photos and documents from Dorothy, who grew up in Garden Home.

Andrew White, Dorothy Papadakos, and Peter Papadakos - 2023

Andrew White, Dorothy Papadakos, and Peter Papadakos – 2023

Mickey Lindsay, Stan Houseman, and Peter Papadakos 2023

Mickey Lindsay, Stan Houseman, and Peter Papadakos 2023

New officers for our Garden Home History Project, meet them in our upcoming Gazette.

Website statistics: Just a note on our statistics from our website, GardenHomeHistory.com. Last year, 2022, we had almost 9,000 visitors. This year, 2023, we’ve averaged 735 visitors per month. We note that visitors are looking at the home page, of course, but then are reading 3 or more pages of our history.

If you wish to receive the printed Gazette (3x a year) in addition to your email Gazette, send us your mailing address.

Remember!

Read the memoir by Dorothy Lois Upchurch, daughter of George and Theresa Upchurch who purchased the White Store in 1936. Life in Garden Home in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. The Oregon Electric Train. Attending Garden Home School. The White store and Red store. Meier and Frank.

We went to the city at least once a week, and Mom was always in a quandary as to what to do with Bud. He was an escape artist – forever running away, and she couldn’t figure whether to get herself ready and then Bud – or the other way around. I remember one time when he was quite small she readied him, tied a rope in the loop of his trousers and fastened him to the clothes line. When we were ready, we found the pants on the end of the line, but missed the train looking for the boy.

Upchurch Store, Garden Home, Oregon

Upchurch Store (photo by Dorothy Stevens).
Courtesy Mildred Stevens. See post.

Discover Garden Home!

Discover notable trees in your neighborhood. Send me a photo and an address. Blooming trees, unusual trees, important trees… GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com.

2022 colorful tree on SW Garden Home Rd

2022 colorful tree on SW Garden Home Rd

We have some changes in our officers for our Garden Home History Project.

Mickey Mistler Lindsay is our new Chairperson, and Esta Mapes continues (thankfully) as our Vice-Chair. Marie Pacella will continue to keep up our 500 subscribers mailing list and send out our UPDATES and Gazettes. Marie will be orienting Susan Houseman to the Treasurer’s role. Elaine Shreve will continue as Editor, doing interviews and publications. Interested to interview or write? Email: GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com

Get Involved

Our Board of Directors continues their monthly meetings. Call to attend. Current subjects include displays in the Library and bulletin board, Century Homes program (we have some 39 Century Homes in Garden Home), Historic Garden Home street signs, new businesses, our newsletters, program planning with the Garden Home Library and more! More Garden Home History walking Tours. We welcome new volunteers to our committees; let us know your interest. Call Mickey at 503-805-5518 or Esta at 503-246-5758.

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022 crop

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022 crop

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street signs: We currently have over 40 of the Historic Garden Home street sign toppers in our community. Click here to view photos of the signs and for information about sponsoring a sign.

Our generous donors permit us to replace the Historic Garden Home street signs once for signs that disappear.

Posted in News | Leave a comment

April 2022 UPDATE – Garden Home History Email

Hello to our Garden Home History Friends, this has been a very busy month, we’ll give you a brief rundown.

Upcoming events

Join us for our first meeting since COVID at the Garden Home Recreation Center, our Board meeting, followed by the unique presentation by Andy Shreve. The Board was impressed with a shorter version!

The search for Cora

The Search for Cora: Monday, May 8th at 6:30 PM at the Garden Home Recreation Center, Room 9, presented by Andy Shreve. The surprising and tragic tale uncovered while searching for lost relatives. The Board of Directors will be meeting from 5 to 6:15 PM (all are welcome).

The 40th Anniversary of our Garden Home Community Library will be celebrated on Saturday, June 3, 2023. Check out the details, outside attractions, maybe even goats??? And lots more. Our History people will also be participating since most of us volunteered to start the Library. Join us! We are so lucky to have our excellent Library!

The next guided Fanno Creek Trail History Walk will be in July, more details next email.

Garden Home News

I visited with the Hyslin family at their large wooded property on Garden Home Road.

Zachary and Lee Hyslin in front of Grandmother Catherine Hyslin's portrait

Zak and Lee Hyslin in front of Grandmother Catherine Hyslin’s portrait

Hyslin side yard

Hyslin side yard

Congratulations to Bob Pearson for coaxing his home into our Century Home Program. He continues to meet all the challenges of repairing and improving his interesting home up Garden Home Road.

Bob Pearson and Stan Houseman with CENTURY HOMES plaque

Bob Pearson and Stan Houseman with CENTURY HOMES plaque

Bob Pearson and his home

Bob Pearson and his home

We have been consulting with Ross Fogelquist regarding our shared concern that the Hansen house on his property may be demolished. We appreciate when an older house is preserved and we are able to share its unique history.

Hansen House - Alta Hansen's original home

Hansen House – Alta Hansen’s original home

Ross Fogelquist inside Fogelbo

Ross Fogelquist inside Fogelbo

We hosted a visit in my home with the children of our Garden Home “Beauty Queen”, Dorothy Johnson, who died last year. Ward Nelson brought the famous organist daughter Dorothy Papadakos, her brother Peter Papadakos and his wife Barbara, and another brother Andrew White. Bob Day, Stan Houseman, Virginia Vanture, Mickey Lindsay and I enjoyed their visit and review of our photos and documents from Dorothy, who grew up in Garden Home.

Andrew White, Dorothy Papadakos, and Peter Papadakos - 2023

Andrew White, Dorothy Papadakos, and Peter Papadakos – 2023

Mickey Lindsay, Stan Houseman, and Peter Papadakos 2023

Mickey Lindsay, Stan Houseman, and Peter Papadakos 2023

New officers for our Garden Home History Project, meet them in our upcoming Gazette.

Website statistics: Just a note on our statistics from our website, GardenHomeHistory.com. Last year, 2022, we had almost 9,000 visitors. This year, 2023, we’ve averaged 735 visitors per month. We note that visitors are looking at the home page, of course, but then are reading 3 or more pages of our history.

If you wish to receive the printed Gazette (3x a year) in addition to your email Gazette, reply with your mailing address.

Remember!

Read the memoir by Dorothy Lois Upchurch, daughter of George and Theresa Upchurch who purchased the White Store in 1936. Life in Garden Home in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. The Oregon Electric Train. Attending Garden Home School. The White store and Red store. Meier and Frank.

Dorothy Upchurch circa 1945

Upchurch Store, Garden Home, Oregon

Upchurch Store (photo by Dorothy Stevens).
Courtesy Mildred Stevens. See post.

Discover Garden Home!

Discover notable trees in your neighborhood. Send me a photo and an address. Blooming trees, unusual trees, important trees… GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com.

2022 colorful tree on SW Garden Home Rd

2022 colorful tree on SW Garden Home Rd

Get Involved

Our Board of Directors continues their monthly meetings. Call to attend. Current subjects include displays in the Library and bulletin board, Century Homes program (we have some 39 Century Homes in Garden Home), Historic Garden Home street signs, new businesses, our newsletters, program planning with the Garden Home Library and more! More Garden Home History walking Tours. We welcome new volunteers to our committees; let us know your interest. Call Mickey at 503-805-5518 or Esta at 503-246-5758.

Read more about Garden Home with hundreds of photos and stories at GardenHomeHistory.com. We love hearing your memories about Garden Home! To unsubscribe, reply to GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com with “UNSUBSCRIBE” in the subject line.

Stay safe and well, from all of our dedicated Board of Directors: Mickey Lindsay, Esta Mapes, Sharon Vedder, John and Marie Pacella, Stan and Susan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler, and Elaine Shreve. Tom Shreve is our webmaster.

– Elaine

Elaine Shreve

Elaine Shreve

Posted in Email updates | Leave a comment

The search for Cora – May 8th, 2023

The search for Cora

The Search for Cora: Monday, May 8th at 6:30 PM at the Garden Home Recreation Center, Room 9, presented by Andy Shreve. The surprising and tragic tale uncovered while searching for lost relatives. The Board of Directors will be meeting from 5 to 6:15 PM (all are welcome).

Andrew Shreve presenting the Search for Cora

Andrew Shreve presenting the Search for Cora

Posted in Events | Tagged , | 1 Comment

CENTURY HOMES: Robert Pearson

Bob Pearson’s home at 6600 SW Garden Home Road was originally built in 1920. A brief summary of Garden Home in the 1920s is included at the end.

In 1993, Bob Pearson moved into his 1920 home and set about improving, updating, and adding rooms and stairs. He thinks that the original owner had a hardware store or at least a general store in Garden Home. Bob has a scientific mind and has worked in oceanography on the east coast and taught other sciences here. As he says, he was teaching computer technology before there were words to describe it.

The initial home was about 25 foot square with 3 rooms. The size was doubled in about 1933 when an addition, possibly another building, was attached, serving as a kitchen. Bob places the date of this addition to a 1933 newspaper he found in the wall of the new structure. Previous owners and Bob have added various extensions, revisions, supports, stairs, and work in the basement.

The basement hosts the large “octopus” type of vintage furnace, now powered with natural gas. This will be changed to an electric heat pump appliance. He has reinforced and improved the stability of the structures in the basement, providing extra support under his piano. He has extended the house 8 feet on the south side, enclosing the stairway with windows, for a unique viewing opportunity.

Stan Houseman, Century Homes chairman of the Garden Home History Project, provided the brass plaque and certificate recognizing the Century Home. Other History Board members also attended the event. Thanks to Bob Pearson to have his home recognized as one of the 30 or more Century Homes in Garden Home.

Garden Home in the 1920s: Immigrants from Switzerland and Sweden, Norway , were moving in to create dairies on the forested hills. Cows could forage around the stumps. Horses were seen daily with The Portland Hunt Club, Portland Riding Academy, Nicol Riding Academy and Aaron Frank’s stables were all within touching distance of each other. The Oregon Electric train was vital to move people and agricultural products to and from Portland. The train junction at Garden Home provided rails south down the valley and west for timber and crops, some 20 to 52 trains a day. Early pioneers settled on Occidental Ave. (76th), Wilson Ave. ( 77th) and Firlock Ave. (78th) next to the school, Westgard Ave. at (now) 87th, and up Garden Home Road, and around the intersection of Oleson and GH Road. Automobiles were beginning to affect the passenger service on the train. The new Garden Home School building opened in 1912. Most homes had large plats to permit a big garden, fruit trees, chickens, often a cow for their milk and butter.

Posted in Events, Homes, People | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Lee, Zak, and Lois Hyslin, 8285 SW Garden Home Road

The Hyslin property on Garden Home Road at SW 83rd Avenue resembles “old Garden Home.” According to County records, this large home was built in 1930, although the family suspects it might have been earlier.

Zachary and Lee Hyslin have lived there most of their lives with their mother Lois Hyslin. Their paternal grandmother, Catherine Hyslin, also lived there in the 1940s through the 1970s. Catherine’s husband and the grandfather, Thor Hyslin, is mentioned in this story. Click here to read their father Richard Hyslin’s obituary from Texas.

Grandparents Thor, from Norway, and Catherine Hyslin were the second owners of the property. Thor’s father was a physician who died at age 57. Thor is remembered to have served in the Postal Service on the rail lines, not in Garden Home. He told the children he had to wear a service gun with that position. He worked other jobs and was an avid golfer. Catherine attended Oregon State College in Corvallis, majoring in music performance.

The father, Richard Hyslin, moved to Texas in about 1967 where he accepted a position as a professor at Pan American College, now University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. Serving as Chair of the Art Department for 13 years, he was a recognized artist who exhibited his ceramics and sculpture nationally. Lois, now retired, has been a dental hygienist.

Lee has been a mechanical engineer and Zak a software engineer.

Zak, (as he calls himself) and Lee remember a wonderful childhood of adventure and lots of kids for all the free time games. They saw pheasants all about and loved catching the tadpoles and crawdads and garter snakes to scare each other. They climbed the cedar trees and hunted golf balls from the Portland Golf Club to sell back to the players. Whiffle ball and baseball were played in the front yard. Neighboring children taught them how to pull up the strong apple tree sprouts to poke into dropped apples and sling them down the road.

Click here to see a class photo and Dick Vonada’s version of the BB gun wars.

The Hyslins were able to look down the road and see the Portland Golf Club’s annual 4th of July fireworks and presentations, north of their property a block or two, with fewer houses and trees than now. Zak and Lee also liked earning money as caddies at the Golf Club, especially carrying two bags, and earning twice as much. The bags were heavy and a challenge to do a good job. Baseball cards and Nerf footballs, the fun goes on.

The large property, 0.7 acres, contains various fruit trees such as Royal Anne cherries, King apples, and more.

Posted in Homes, People | Tagged | 3 Comments

March 2023 News

In this edition: The Search for Cora, Spring flowers, record snow fall, new officers, and In Memoriam.

Welcome to our website about historic Garden Home. In the People and Places pages, you’ll find well over two hundred stories, and over two thousand photos of vintage Garden Home and residents attending our events. To receive the free newsletter and email Updates, contact us at GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com or call Marie Pacella at 503-244-5758 or Elaine Shreve at 503-246-5879.

Upcoming events

The search for CoraThe Search for Cora: Monday, May 8th at 6:30 PM at the Garden Home Recreation Center, Room 9, presented by Andy Shreve. The surprising and tragic tale uncovered while searching for lost relatives. The Board of Directors will be meeting from 5 to 6:15 PM (all are welcome).

Spring has come!

Send us a couple photos of the blooming plants in your yard for our next UPDATE. Hope you are well and looking forward to some nice weather. That February snowstorm set records! Reminds me of the Whitney’s (now the Old Market Pub) flocked Christmas trees.

Daffodils on SW 87th Ave

Daffodils on SW 87th Ave

Springtime daffodils

Springtime daffodils

February 2023 snow fall

February 2023 snow fall

February 2023 record snow fall

February 2023 record snow fall

Whitney's Cannery - Leona Whitney and CHEER UP IT MUST BE COLDER IN ALASKA sign 1969

Whitney’s Cannery – Leona Whitney and CHEER UP IT MUST BE COLDER IN ALASKA sign 1969

Whitney's Cannery - Flocked Christmas trees - Leona Whitney 1970

Whitney’s Cannery – Flocked Christmas trees – Leona Whitney 1970

We have some changes in our officers for our Garden Home History Project.

Mickey Mistler Lindsay is our new Chairperson, and Esta Mapes continues (thankfully) as our Vice-Chair. Marie Pacella will continue to keep up our 500 subscribers mailing list and send out our UPDATES and Gazettes. Marie will be orienting Susan Houseman to the Treasurer’s role. Elaine Shreve will continue as Editor, doing interviews and publications. Interested to interview or write? Email: GardenHomeHistory@gmail.com

In Memoriam

Frank Lesage: He and his wife Joanne raised their family in Garden Home, living on SW 87th Ave. for over 50 years. Obituary.

Nancy Tamborra Donner: Nancy was very active in the early Garden Home community and lived up the hill on Garden Home Road. Her very interesting story is on our website. Obituary.

Thomas J. Lekas: The Lekas family shared their Century Home, with story on our website. Obituary.

Kevin Freeman: This three-time equestrian Olympian lived on the eastern section of Mayo Street with his family. Debbie McKiernan Long fondly recalls her times with the horses and this family. Obituary.

Doc Hickman: Doc’s wife Linda called to tell us that Doc had died in February, 2023, (no obituary). Doc’s story on our website is one of my favorites, full of Garden Home history…and fun! And the big photo of the kids and the dog is my favorite.

Get Involved

Our Board of Directors continues their monthly meetings. Call to attend. Current subjects include displays in the Library and bulletin board, Century Homes program (we have some 39 Century Homes in Garden Home), Historic Garden Home street signs, new businesses, our newsletters, program planning with the Garden Home Library and more! More Garden Home History walking Tours. We welcome new volunteers to our committees; let us know your interest. Call Mickey at 503-805-5518 or Esta at 503-246-5758.

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022 crop

John Pacella, Susan and Stan Houseman, Jan Fredrickson, Kevin Mistler March 2022

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022 crop

Sharon Vedder, Esta Mapes, Elaine Shreve, Marie Pacella March 2022

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street sign

Historic Garden Home street signs: We currently have over 40 of the Historic Garden Home street sign toppers in our community. Click here to view photos of the signs and for information about sponsoring a sign.

Our generous donors permit us to replace the Historic Garden Home street signs once for signs that disappear.

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Kevin J. Freeman obituary

Kevin J. Freeman

Kevin J. Freeman

October 21, 1941 to March 10, 2023

The equestrian world lost one of its most distinguished luminaries March 10, as three-time Olympian Kevin J. Freeman passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, in a Portland, Ore. hospital.

Kevin, 81, represented the United States at three Olympic games and the Pan American Games, and was also a successful businessman and coach and mentor to equestrians around the world. Kevin’s greatest legacy, however, is that of the large and loving family he and his wife Barrie created and nurtured during their 52-year marriage, including four children, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Born in 1941 and raised in Portland, Kevin spent many of his summers at his parent’s farm in Molalla. He attended St. Thomas More Catholic School in Portland and then graduated from Lincoln High School, where he met his future wife, Barrie Hallinan. He went on to earn his undergraduate degree from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and his MBA from Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Kevin and Barrie, who were best friends in high school, eventually married and raised their three sons (Eric, Peter, and Kevin) and daughter (Wendy) at their Portland home, Clodomir Farm.

Kevin and Barrie enjoyed meeting up regularly with their large family to share meals and a laugh, and he was always available if his children, family, or friends needed an encouraging word or any kind of help. He loved playing jokes on his children, with his mischievous side showing through as he taught them to put a cup of water above a door for maximum dousing during indoor water fights and lined them up on Christmas morning, by age, making them wait until they nearly burst before opening presents. A rabid sports fan, Kevin often attended Portland Trail Blazer games, and he and Barrie loved watching Gonzaga University basketball games (their son Kevin graduated from Gonzaga). He’d also have rousing basketball games with his children and neighborhood kids and parents.

Kevin’s many storied equestrian accomplishments include winning a gold medal as part of the U.S. team that competed at the 1963 Pan-American Games in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where he also won an individual silver medal. He helped the U.S. team win silver medals in the 1964, 1968, and 1972 Olympic Games, and in 1964, he was the U.S. National Three-Day Event Champion and won the Olympic Trials in Gladstone, New Jersey. At the 1968 Olympics, Kevin demonstrated his remarkable equestrian skills, riding Chalan, whom he’d ridden only once before. Kevin capped off his Olympic career at the 1972 games, finishing 5th individually and leading the American contingent to a team silver as the highest-placed U.S. rider. He had one of only three clear rounds (no faults) in the treacherous cross-country phase, riding one of his longtime equine partners, Good Mixture.

Kevin also excelled in the equestrian disciplines of Steeplechase and Show Jumping. Showing his true excellence as an athlete, he placed third in the Maryland Hunt Cup, considered one of the most grueling steeplechase courses in the world, and also won the 1968 Iroquois Steeplechase in Tennessee, the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup in 1969, and the New Jersey Hunt Cup in 1970. He then turned his attention to the sport of Show Jumping, where he competed and won at the highest levels across North America, including at the illustrious Spruce Meadows and Thunderbird show parks.

When not competing, you’d often find him coaching students, whom he carefully guided through their equestrian careers. Kevin delighted in sharing his knowledge with the hundreds of horses and riders he trained over the last 50 years at Clodomir Farm. He also hosted the Freeman Farm Horse Trials at his family’s Molalla farm for several years, attracting competitors from around the country.

An all-around athlete, Kevin was a starter and varsity athlete for the 1961-62 Cornell University men’s polo team and an avid skier. When he wasn’t riding, you could find Freeman schussing the slopes at Mt. Hood and Mt. Bachelor and feeding his voracious appetite for reading and Barrie’s chocolate chip cookies!

Kevin was never one to boast, but his achievements didn’t go unnoticed. He was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 and into the United States Eventing Association Hall of Fame in 2009 along with his 1972 Olympics mount, Good Mixture.

Kevin’s love of family also was apparent in his highly successful business career, as he worked closely with his father, Percy, and his two brothers, Michael and Perk, to run J.A. Freeman and Son, a farm-implement manufacturing company that was based out of Portland for more than 100 years. When the family sold the business to Allied Systems Company in 2004, he and his two brothers continued working together, creating the Freeman Group, a commercial real estate company that he helped run until his death.

Kevin’s loss will be deeply felt by his family, who’ll lovingly remember him, including his wife, Barrie; his four children, Eric Freeman (and wife Stephanie) of Portland; Peter Freeman (and wife Anna) of Beaverton; Kevin of Christchurch, Barbados; and Wendy Freeman Gallo (and husband Edgar) of Montgomery, Texas; his brother Perk Freeman; sister Laurie Freeman; and his six grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and dear friends. Kevin was preceded in death by his brother Michael Freeman and his parents, Percy and Rosemary O’Donnell Freeman of Portland.

Family and friends are invited to a memorial service for Kevin on March 22 at 10 am at St. Mary’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, followed by a reception. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Kevin’s name to the United States Equestrian Team or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Posted in Obituaries | Tagged | 1 Comment

Thomas J. Lekas obituary

September 20, 1930 to February 23, 2023

Thomas J. Lekas, 92, peacefully passed away Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023 in Vancouver, Wash.

He is survived by his family including his beloved wife, Catherine “Cat Bird;” children, James Lekas (Holly), Janet Chapman (Dave), George Lekas (Jennifer), Leah Kravas (Demetri); grandchildren, Sam and Angela Chapman, Andrew and Lauren, JJ and Rachael, Ryan Chiotti (Erica), Robin Hackett (Matthew), Ragan Hemenway (Blake) and Ellen Grose (Nolan); and great-grandchildren, Riley and Tanner, Audrey, and Lily. Tom was preceded in death by his parents, James and Assimina Lekas; his aunt, Irene Milon; brothers, Ernest and Andrew Lekas; son, John Lekas, and his first wife, Ann Strowger.
A funeral will be held at 11 a.m., Friday, March 3, 2023, at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral. Remembrances in lieu of flowers may be sent to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital or Camp Agape, Portland.

[Editor: Read about the Lekas Century Home.]

Posted in Obituaries | Tagged | 2 Comments

Nancy Tamborra Donner obituary

Nancy Donner, Nov 8 2017

January 6, 1929 to December 21, 2022

On Dec. 21, 2022, Nancy P. Donner passed away peacefully, at her daughter’s home in Camas, Wash., surrounded by her family at 93.

Nancy lived in the Garden Home area for 50 years and was very active in her community. She was known and loved by many.

She is survived by her daughter, Nancy (Brian) McCarl; son, Larry (Jian) Donner; daughter, Suzanne (Jeff) Adams; and eight grandchildren. She was predeceased by her son, William and her daughter, Madilyn.

There will be a celebration of life at 2 p.m., Saturday, March 18, 2023, at Multnomah Presbyterian Church, 7555 S.W. 45th Ave., Portland, OR.

[Editor: Read our story about Nancy.]

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