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Posts Tagged ‘in memory’

Raise a glass for a legend

Posted in In memory, tagged , , , , on September 29, 2024| 2 Comments »

John Rodriguey

John Rodriguey was just a good dude.

The longtime owner of Toby’s Tavern, he was a welcome presence whenever he slid by Videoville or Miriam’s Espresso back in the day.

Rodriguey, who passed away this weekend, had a smile on his face every time I saw him, or at least that’s how I remember it.

I’m not going to say he agreed with every movie recommendation I gave him over the years, but he was never mad, never chucked the VHS case at my head.

Sometimes our cinematic tastes matched up perfectly. Sometimes not.

When they didn’t, he offered a warm smile, shook his head, and handed back the tape with a little chuckle, telling me, “There’s something wrong with you, David.”

Our paths crossed at other times, whether in downtown Coupeville or at a Wolf game, especially when his grandchildren were involved.

But it’s Videoville, my home away from home for so many years, where I saw him the most.

He will always be part of those memories, and for that, I am glad.

His children and grandchildren are some of the best people I know, and that comes from the man at the top.

John Rodriguey was just a good dude.

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“Darlene’s life told a story of dedication, love, and kindness”

Posted in In memory, tagged , , , , on August 19, 2024| 1 Comment »

Darlene Sherman enjoys time with her great-grandchildren. (Photo courtesy Deb Sherman)

She was a farmer’s wife, one whose gentle legacy will live on for generations.

Darlene Sherman brought joy and kindness to everything she did and made the prairie a more-welcoming place.

She accomplished much in her 90 years, and her family and friends will cherish their time with her.

 

Iva “Darlene” Sherman, aged 90, passed away peacefully at her home in Coupeville, Washington, on July 18, 2024.

Born on June 11, 1934, in Twin Falls Idaho, she was the daughter of Don and Iva Kilborn.

Darlene was preceded in death by her husband, Roger, her parents, and her brother, Vaughn Kilborn.

Darlene grew up on a farm in Kimberly, Idaho and graduated from Kimberly High School.

She attended the University of Idaho and majored in home economics and minored in music.

Her passion for music was not only a field of study, but a lifelong pursuit.

She met her husband, Roger, who was attending Washington State University, on a train headed for a Wesley Foundation conference for college students in Kansas.

Roger was immediately smitten with Darlene’s beautiful smile, gentle spirit, and her stunning red hair.

They married in 1956 and two weeks later Roger was stationed in Iceland serving in the Air Force.

Darlene stayed in Idaho and taught home economics.

After being apart for a year, they moved to Edwards Air Force Base, CA and eventually moved to Coupeville to work on the family farm with Roger’s dad, Clark Sherman, and his brother Al Sherman.

With her background, being the wife of a farmer came naturally to Darlene.

She enjoyed being home to raise her children, cook amazing meals for a hungry farmer (especially her famous chicken and rice casserole), and work when needed on the farm.

She supported Roger with his many community activities, including the Lions Club and the Sea Explorers.

Darlene supported the church and community with her many gifts.

She was a lifelong member of the church and joined the Coupeville United Methodist Church when she and Roger moved to Coupeville.

Music was Darlene’s passion. She was a member of the church choir for 65 years.

She performed solos, sang in duets, quartets and was a member of the community choir and the Choralaires.

Her musical talents also led to her teaching music in Sunday school.

When the church purchased a set of bells, Darlene became a 40-year member of the bell choir.

She played bells at her 90th birthday celebration at the Sunday church service just a month before she passed away.

An active member of the United Methodist Women, Darlene served in a variety of offices over the years.

She made countless meals, cookies and desserts, and for decades helped make Christmas wreaths, all for mission work in our community and the world.

She served on the church’s Music, Memorial, and History committees, and was a member of P.E.O., supporting women’s education.

For many years Darlene volunteered at Whidbey Health Hospital, greeting people and serving beverages to patients.

She also worked on the election board, greeting people who came into the school to vote, and counting ballots late into the night.

Darlene’s life was a collection of chapters that told a story of dedication, love, and kindness.

She always had time to talk and make you feel special; like she had been waiting all day to see you and now the day was complete.

She is survived by her children, Connie Tripp (Mike), and Don Sherman (Deb), grandchildren, Brad (Abbey), Jamie, Bryan (Bailey), Jeff (Leah), Tony (Shelby), 11 great-grandchildren, brother in-law Jim Sherman (Michael), and many extended family and friends whom she loved deeply.

A memorial service will be held at the Coupeville United Methodist Church on Saturday, August 24th, at 11:00 AM.

Please join us in celebrating Darlene’s life, where we will remember the joy she brought to all of us.

In remembrance of Darlene’s life, the family asks that any charitable donations be made to The Coupeville United Methodist Church memorials or the music program.

Coupeville United Methodist Church, PO Box 566, Coupeville, WA 98239.

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“Glad you got to see me”

Posted in In memory, tagged , , , , on April 23, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Demy Dean

April 19, 2024, Damaris “Demy” Dean, 97, of Puyallup, WA, passed away peacefully with her family at her side after a sudden and unexpected decline in her health.

Born in Auburn, WA on July 17, 1926, she spent her childhood in Juneau, Alaska during the Great Depression.

Demy moved to Whidbey Island in her teens where she met her future husband, Orlan, at Coupeville High School.

He joined the Marines during World War II and they married after his return.

Living in Seattle while he completed his degree at the UW, she worked in the office of Bartell Drugs, studied music and was an accomplished singer.

They returned to Coupeville and moved to his childhood home on Penn Cove.

Orlan worked with his father at Dean Motor Company and later bought the business that they ran together as Dean Chevrolet.

They were a fixture of the Coupeville business community for many years as well as the Elks, yacht club and golf club and their active bridge club.

Forever proud of their daughters, Paula (deceased 2002) and Althea (Bill) Riley.

She and Orlan adored family life on the beach in the little town of Coupeville.

They beachcombed, camped, fished, Demy was the queen of clam digging, they skied, sailed, and hosted many a luau around their little above ground pool and she made the best Barbie doll cakes.

She was abundantly creative and full to the brim with knowledge gained through all of her life experiences.

She had a hack for everything, spent hours on Facebook, made lists upon lists, and loved to sort her ‘stuff’ while wearing red lipstick and clip-on earrings.

Demy could fix or refurbish anything from reupholstering Jeep seats to pouring a concrete sea wall and more!

She was strong willed, energetic, loyal, had an enormous heart and a love of conversation.

Her roles as Gram and GG were her favorite in her later years.

Granddaughter Merritt was her best friend from the beginning.

She always said I just want to live long enough to see Merritt graduate and she did, then to marry and she did, then to have my Great Grandchildren and her dream came true twice.

Little Georgie and Garland brought her so much delight these last few years.

She was still living alone and going strong until the week she passed and only slowed by Macular degeneration and glaucoma (she would say, Wear your sunglasses!)

She had been in great health, out for a pedicure and a perm before she suffered a heart attack during the night and her health declined over the period of a week.

As she told the numerous kind hospital staff that cared for her “she was ready to go.”

In typical Demy fashion, there are no services planned, certainly no pomp and circumstance.

Just remember her and a life well lived the next time you wander a thrift store, peek into the .25 box at a garage sale, admire a gardenia blossom or Hawaiian lei, enjoy a perfectly ripened cantaloupe or hear the yipping of a tiny, much-loved Chihuahua.

“As Huff would say: Glad you got to see me.”

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Farewell to a class act

Posted in In memory, tagged , , , , on April 9, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Miriam and Frank Meyer

Frank Meyer, Sr., who passed away Friday at age 86, changed my life.

When he and his wife Miriam hired me to work at Videoville in 1994, they were rescuing me from life on the mussel rafts and giving me a chance to embrace the love of my life, movies.

Through two buildings — first in a small, converted house and then in a spiffy building which also housed the new-at-the-time Miriam’s Espresso and seemed imposingly large at first — it was my home away from home for 12+ years.

Miriam, who became like a second mom to me, was my daily companion in the early years, while Frank, who was wheeling and dealing in the world of real estate, swung by on a frequent basis.

The Meyer children — Frank, Jr., Jennifer, Michael, Kathryn, and Megan — all grew up in the store as well.

Over the years, they joined me and my sister, Sarah, and many others in renting movies, making drinks, and, in some cases, being pushed around the store while crammed in the rolling cart normally stationed under the video return slot.

From ages 23-35 I haunted Videoville, years which saw the birth of my first nephew and the passing of both my parents.

I often say that if video stores were still a thing, I would still be working at one, and you might not be reading these words, and it’s true.

It’s why, in recent days, I have begun a slightly cockeyed mission to recreate Videoville in a side room of my duplex.

Tuesday was the day new releases hit video stores. In tribute, we welcome 38 more DVD’s home today.

In a short period of time, I’ve gone from owning four or five DVDs to being up over 800, and I now spend my drive time scanning the sides of roads for anyone offering free bookcases.

I’ve begun to break my new wave of movies into sections, from traditional genres like sci-fi and suspense to things like Oscar Best Picture Winners, or more diverse sub-sections such as “Can’t Stop the Beat” or “No Hoes, Just Ho-Ho’s.”

In its own way, it’s a chance to recapture a bit of my hazy, lazy, Reese’s Pieces-eatin’ past, to use “Videoville 2.0” to keep alive the dream.

And it’s a past which was greatly shaped by Frank and Miriam, who not only hired me, and never fired me, but allowed me to have a surprising amount of say in the direction the store took over the years.

We outlasted many a video joint killed by Blockbuster, thanks to our diverse movie selection and small-town charm.

Plus, the power of a potently priced cup o’ coffee, as the rising tide of the espresso world helped keep the movie rental biz going in later years.

Through it all, through the heady days of renting 500+ VHS tapes on a Friday night in Cow Town, through the battle over the Big Rock, Frank was the calm, reassuring backbone of the Meyer empire.

Whether rolling big in the property biz, or sipping some freshly brewed java, one eyebrow slightly cocked, as he listened to my wild-eyed video store ideas, he was a genuinely rock-solid guy.

I am sad to hear of his passing, but will remember him for all he accomplished, and the many lives he touched.

Frank’s legacy lives on through his children, who have all gone on to make a positive impact, and his grandchildren, who are bright-eyed and brilliant.

And maybe it lives on a little each time I shepherd a DVD through the sliding glass door on my duplex, welcoming the disc to its new forever home.

Videoville is reemerging, in a fashion, in my spare room, and it’s partially because Frank and Miriam let me marinate in the movies.

For that, I will always be grateful.

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A gentle man, a warm spirit

Posted in In memory, tagged , , , , on March 30, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Warren Ove enjoys a moment with his daughter Megan.

Warren Ove was one of the kindest men I have known.

He always had a smile, a chuckle, a light in his eyes.

Over the years, as I saw him from across the counter at Videoville, whether he was perusing the movies or getting coffee from Miriam’s Espresso, Mr. Ove always took time to ask about my family.

He shared a devout faith with many of my relatives and was deeply committed to his ties as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

It had been quite some time since I attended that group’s meetings, but Mr. Ove was always warm and welcoming in his interactions with me.

He had a special way about him, and I was always glad to have a moment or two talking with him.

That carried over to his wife and children, who like Mr. Ove, reflect the best of what our community offers.

I offer my condolences to his family on his passing, but I also know a major part of his faith was his belief in a resurrection.

He will be remembered, and appreciated, by all who knew him.

 

From the family:

It is always difficult saying goodbye to someone we love and cherish.

Family and friends must say goodbye to their beloved Warren Eugene Ove Jr. (Oak Harbor, Washington), born in Weed, California, who passed away at the age of 75, on March 10, 2024.

He was predeceased by his parents, Warren Ove and Elsie Ove.

He is survived by his wife Venita Ove; his children, Megan Ove and Tyson Ove; his granddaughter Kiera; and his siblings, Wayne Ove, Steven Ove, and Anita Pope.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 13, 2024 at 3:00 PM at the Oak Harbor High School (1 Wildcat Way, Oak Harbor, WA 98277).

In lieu of flowers please donate to jw.org.

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