Ralph W. Ellenburg, 82

Ralph W. Ellenburg, 82, formerly of Kalispell, passed away Sunday, Oct. 1, 2006, in Lebanon, Ore. He was born in Corvallis, Ore., on Oct. 8, 1923, to Geary Ellenburg and Elsie Bennett Ellenburg.

He is survived by his daughter, Tawny Sportsman, and her husband, Jon, of Sweet Home, Ore.; his granddaughter, Katie Hanson, and her husband, Matthew, of Redmond, Wash.; and stepdaughters Pati Pennington, Jaye Vollmer and Holly Ghrames, and their respective families.

Ralph and his family moved from Eugene, Ore., to Kalispell in 1960, and he was employed at C & C Plywood until he retired. He remained in Kalispell until January 2006, when he returned to Oregon to be near his family.

He loved hunting, fishing and reading, and was a sports enthusiast. He developed a thirst for reading as a young man and you rarely saw Ralph without a book, if he wasn't working, fishing or eating.

After he retired he developed an interest in gardening (something he must have inherited from his mother) and he loved animals. He also enjoyed traveling internationally and said that Africa and Egypt were his favorites (if he had to pick). Ralph was a member of the Armed Forces and was stationed in Attu, Alaska, in the Aleutian Islands during World War II. He was also a lifelong member of the Elks Lodge.

He was a quiet man who asked little of those around him, and he will be missed by his family and friends.

There will be a memorial service at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, (Ralph's 83rd birthday) at the Seventh-day Adventist Church on the corner of Fourth and Holly, in Sweet Home. Prior to the memorial service there will be a gathering at 12:30 p.m. at Century Fields Assisted Living in Lebanon, Ore., where he resided, for a time of remembrance with his special friends.

Donations may be made to your local Humane Society in his memory.