Lauren Keith Hoisington, 96, lifelong resident of Nez Perce and Latah counties, passed away at St. Joseph Regional Medical Center, Monday, June 10, 2019.
He was born Aug. 13, 1922, at the Davidson Nursing Home in Kendrick, the eldest of nine children born to Cletis and Beatrice (Prentiss) Hoisington.
Dad was a man of the soil, a quiet man, a reflective man, a man of wry wit and humor. He was a story-teller extraordinaire, a self-taught gunsmith and computer geek. He was an avid reader of history and technical journals, and had a keen fascination with steam locomotives.
He excelled at fly fishing and spent idyllic hours on Marble Creek with his son, Ed, and brother Neale. He had a mechanically oriented mind and combined that with a gift for woodworking. In his later years, he became an adventurous cook, and owned up to “wasting a colossal amount of time” watching YouTube cooking videos. He was a consummate puzzler.
Dad attended Stony Point School and Lapwai High School, graduating in 1940. He routinely caught the school bus at Myrtle after hot-footing it two and a half miles down the hill from the ranch on Potlatch Ridge (his best time was 25 minutes top to bottom). But it took twice as long going back up the hill.
One day he met a neighbor’s pretty and vivacious daughter, Katie, when she plunked herself down next to him on the school bus, and the rest is history. He and Catherine Maund were married April 20, 1947, in Pasadena, Calif., where he had gone to fetch her home to Idaho. They were married for 60 years and had five children.
After high school, Dad heard that they were hiring at Farragut for $1 per hour. He thought, “That’s for me — big money!” He and three schoolmates were hired and went to work building Bayview Naval Training Center on Lake Pend Oreille.
He enlisted in the U.S. Army in September 1942 when, at age 20, he no longer needed his parents’ consent. He was a cryptographic specialist (tech sergeant) assigned to the 6661st Signal Corps, first in Casablanca and then Oran through the end of World War II; a total of 31 months in Africa. It was on his way to North Africa aboard the troop ship Chateau Thierry that he said he’d had some “mighty fine sleeping” in a forward berth four decks down during rough seas. He was discharged in December 1945.
He and his brother, Frank, farmed together for 34 years on Big Bear Ridge. He often confessed to being basically a lazy man, because he welcomed rain (that meant a chance to get out of the field). For many years, Dad enjoyed hunting camp “back of Pierce” with his father, brothers, uncles and cousins. Groceries for the week ran each of them five or six dollars.
He and Mom enjoyed square dancing, pinochle, golf and gardening (he: tomatoes and melons; she: flowers). They made many trips to the Oregon Coast but never stayed more than two or three days. The fields were always calling.
Dad is survived by his daughters, Lin of La Conner, Wash., Nancy (Kevin) Boorman of Depoe Bay, Ore., Janine (Bill) Prichard of Anacortes, Wash., and Sonia (Dale) Main of Bovill; son Ed (Janis) Hoisington of Lewiston; sister Cleta King of Spokane; brothers Neale (Marilyn) Hoisington of Juliaetta, Jim (Linda) Hoisington of Culdesac, and Don (Elaine) Hoisington of Kendrick; nine grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his wife in 2007; parents; three brothers, Frank, Philip and Arnold; and sister Vivian Blair.
A celebration of life will be held at 10 a.m. June 22 at the Grange Hall, 614 E. Main, Kendrick. Memorials may be made to J-K Ambulance, PO Box 182, Kendrick, ID 83537; or a charity of your choice. Malcom’s Brower-Wann Funeral Home assisted with arrangements.
Service Information
- Date & Time
- Saturday, June 22, 10:00 AM
- Location
-
Kendrick Grange Hall
614 E. Main Street
Kendrick, Idaho 83537
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