Margie Blank, 80, of Baker City, died Dec. 3, 2007, at Ashley Manor Care Center.
Her funeral will be Saturday, Dec. 8, at 11 a.m. at the Richland Christian Church in Richland. Interment will be at Eagle Valley Cemetery. Friends are invited to join the family for a potluck reception to be held at the Richland Christian Church following the services.
Margie Lura Blank was born in Eagle Valley on June 1, 1927, to Russell and Mildred (Allen) Greene. She attended grade school at Sunnyside School and graduated from Eagle Valley High School in 1945.
Margie married Jack Myles Blank, the love of her life, on May 25, 1946. Most of their married life was spent in Eagle Valley farming. Jack died in February 1971. Margie then married Warren Neet Sept. 28, 1973. He died in 1997.
Margie grew up during the Depression, but because of a rich family life, she never complained about not having material things. Her favorite pastimes as a child were dressing up her kittens, even though they didn’t appreciate it, and riding her horse Tony bareback. Even teasing from a neighbor about her fat old horse did not dim her enthusiasm. Often Margie bragged to her children about her ability to ride bareback at a dead run and even proved it, leaving her children wide-eyed.
Margie was a hard worker, working side-by-side with her husband, Jack, during all of their farming years. Her favorite part of putting up hay was the mowing – before swathers! She prided herself in irrigating the fields and it was nearly impossible to find a dry spot when she had been irrigating. Margie could hold up her end in the dairy barn and did so for many years. She loved working with her father in various remodeling projects and could wield a hammer and paint and wallpaper with the best of them.
Grandchildren acknowledged and greatly appreciated her unconditional love. Without hesitation, her home was open and considered the prime gathering place for immediate family as well as out-of-town extended family as they came for celebrations, holidays, visits, and funerals.
After retirement, bird-watching became a favorite pastime. Margie no longer had to steal time to read books and took full advantage of that. While she grew a vegetable garden because she thought she should, it was the flower beds that really got her attention. She cared for her own lawn until she moved to Baker City about two years ago. The neighbor’s cows were in easy view during calving season and she enjoyed watching them, often calling the neighbor if she thought a cow was in trouble.
Margie is survived by her children Linda Miller and her husband Dennis, Pamela Woodcock and her husband Bob, Dean Blank and his wife Kathy, all of Baker City, and Jenette Blank of Vancouver, Washington; grandchildren Charles Riggs, Stephanie Jones, Russell Smith, Mark Patrick, Michelle Bergener, Monica Patrick, Melody Woodcock, Lee Blank, Joshua Blank, and Cara Schock; 19 great-grandchildren; sister-in-law Betty Greene; numerous cousins and other relatives including her uncle, Sherman Allen of Baker City.
She was preceded in death by her husbands Jack Blank and Warren Neet, her parents, her brother Douglas Greene, and a grandchild, Kevin Patrick.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Richland EMT Continuing Education fund through Tami’s Pine Valley Funeral Home P.O. Box 543 Halfway, OR 97834.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, December 7, 2007
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor
