Our dear friend, and Life Member, Bill Blake was sent off in proper style on his new adventure with a packed memorial service on Thursday, July 16, 2009, at Snohomish’s Presbyterian Church.
Bill was born in the family home on Avenue H in 1921, and where he was living with his daughter Bonnie when he died in the hospital on July 8th. He had been in and out of the hospital for the past couple of years, so it was always a treat when I would run into him shopping at Top Foods. He would apologize that he wasn’t quite ready yet to take the tour of First Street that he promised for an oral history project that I was hoping to do with him. That’s how I met Bill, as the to-go-guy with a question of what business preceded the current one in such and such building on First.
Once, I found Bill in the flower section at the store and asked him what he was up to. It was Memorial Day weekend and he was picking out flowers for his wife’s grave, “I don’t want Georgia upset with me,” he said. No chance of the now.
You may read more about Bill’s life HERE.
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Bill would have enjoyed the exhibition now on view in our Waltz Building, titled, “Treasurers from the Attic.” Charter member, Middy Ruthruff led a committee responsible for selecting, installing and now attending the extensive exhibition of a wide variety of objects and memorabilia. And it’s FREE! Open from 11 to 3p. everyday until July 25th.
Read the article in the Herald HERE.
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Finally, a heads-up that my monthly column in the Tribune, “Snohomish: Then and Now” is also available on it’s own website: Snohomish Then And Now — and it has just been updated with a story about Bickford Motors, a generous supporter of the Society.