Gayle Buchanan Karshner
August 29, 1916- August 29, 2011
Gayle Karshner passed away peacefully at her home on August 29, 2011, on her 95th birthday. Gayle Buchanan Karshner was born in her family's home on the Boulevard in Ashland, OR, August 29, 1916. She was the youngest of five children of William Edgar and Rose Kee Buchanan, the only child born in Oregon. Her parents had migrated west from Humansville, Missouri. Her father had been a schoolteacher but after marriage became a dentist.
Gayle always felt privileged to have the advantages of being raised in such a joyous, fun loving, happy, and talented family. The family moved to Eugene, OR, in 1922 to make it easier for all the children to attend the University of Oregon. Gayle attended Patterson Grammar School, University High School, and graduated from the U of O in 1938 with a BA in English/ Drama/ Education. She was President of the Associated Women Students, Secretary of her class, and selected for Mortar Board. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She spent the following two years attending Stanford University and Claremont Colleges in graduate study. Years later she received an MA degree in English at HSU.
Gayle met Don W. Karshner at Stanford, and they were married at her home in Eugene, Feb. 11, 1940. They spent the summer running the hikers' outpost camp on Lake of the Woods for Fallen Leaf Resort in the Sierra. In the fall of 1941 they moved to Arcata, CA, where Don joined the faculty of Humboldt State College as head of the Dept. of Speech and Drama. Gayle always worked with Don, helping with make-up and costumes. Students were always welcome in their home.
They lost their first child in May of 1942, but welcomed their son Gary Buchanan Karshner, born in Palo Alto, May 1943. When Gary was three months old, Don joined the Seabees to serve in WWII until the fall of 1945. At the invitation of President Arthur Gist, Gayle replaced Don on the faculty. She and John Van Duzer were the Speech/ Drama department during the war. During that time, Gayle also became Dean of Women briefly replacing Monica Hadley who had taken a pregnancy leave. Following the war, her second son, Warner William Karshner, was born August 12, 1946 in Palo Alto.
Her children were always Gayle's greatest pride and joy. She was active in PTA and was honored with a Life Membership in that organization for co-chairing the school bond campaign to rebuild Arcata High School after the old building was condemned. She served as "den mother" in Cub Scouts for each son, and made her home a gathering place for their friends.
The wartime service proved to be too much; Gayle succumbed to tuberculosis in January of 1947 and spent the next eight months isolated in sanitaria. Fortunately, she was one of the first patients to be treated with the newly discovered anti-biotic, streptomycin. It prepared her for three thoracic surgeries, and by August she was declared cured. She always felt particularly grateful to those who had made this recovery possible. She volunteered for the Lung Association, and wrote her story, "One Patient's Family" which was published in the Association Journal, and she was invited to attend the society's annual meeting to read her story at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
When her sons left home for college, she taught English at McKinleyville High School and Arcata High School for over ten years when she chose to retire to care for her husband, Don, who was ill. Don died in 1978. Following his death, she was invited to teach a workshop on "Adjustment for widows" at College of the Redwoods. This proved successful, and Gayle continued more workshops for several years, at the YWCA, and other locations. In later years, Gayle married long-time friend Stanley "Neb" Roscoe. They lived together happily for 25 years, traveling a great deal and sharing many interests, including writing, until he died in 2007. In 1979 she was asked to direct the Writers' Project for the Retired Senior Volunteer program. For seven years she coordinated statewide memoir writing contests for persons over 55 that proved to be very popular. Four volumes of selected entries were published. In 1979 Gayle formed writing groups to encourage older folks to write their memories. The Arcata group called themselves "The Silver Quills" and assumed a life of its own, remaining continuously active, meeting twice a month, to this day, even without Gayle's leadership. Urging older people to write their stories became Gayle's passion because so much social history comes from diaries and letters that today have been replaced by telephone calls and e-mails. Gayle enjoyed writing and leaves a large library bound "Story of the Buchanan Family" in several libraries in towns where the family had lived. She also authored "A Bell Rang in Uniontown", a history of the first hundred years of Arcata and its Methodist Church, 1994. This book won a prize for being the best church history in a four-year period. She also edited and published "Bearkiller", the story of the Karshner family written by her husband's uncle, Dr. Warner Karshner. Sales of this book help support the Paul Karshner Memorial Museum, a part of the school system, in Puyallup, WA. Active in the Humboldt County Historical Society, Gayle served as president for one year, and published many articles in the society's magazine, The Humboldt Historian. Gayle was known for her smile and humor and enjoyed the affection of a host of friends, young and old.
Gayle was predeceased by her parents, her siblings: Kee Groves, Edgar Buchanan, Kate Buchanan, and Lova Young. She had also lost her husband, Dr. Don. W. Karshner, and her second husband, Dr. Stanley N. Roscoe as well as her younger son, Dr. Warner William Karshner. She leaves her son Dr. Gary Karshner, San Antonio, TX, his daughters, Margaret Karshner, Seattle, WA and Katherine Karshner, Charlotte. NC; her daughter-in-law, Diane Nason Karshner, Gig Harbor, WA, and her sons, Eric Karshner, Park City, UT, and Brett Karshner, Seattle, WA. She also leaves her stepchildren, Cate Roscoe, Driggs, ID, Lee Roscoe Bragg, Eureka, CA, and Jack Roscoe, Arcata, and their spouses, children, and grandchildren, as well as her nephew and wife, Bernard and Gloria Young, Medford, OR, their children, and her niece and husband, Brooke and Lyt Constable, and son, New York City.
A celebration of Gayle's life will take place on Monday, September 5th at 10 am at the Arcata United Methodist Church, 1761 11th St., Arcata. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Humboldt Area Foundation or the charity of your choice.
Published in Times-Standard from Sep. 2 to Sep. 4, 2011
--------------------------------------------------------------
A photo of the headstone that Gayle shares with her husband, Don, and infant child in BillionGraves is the source for her burial location
August 29, 1916- August 29, 2011
Gayle Karshner passed away peacefully at her home on August 29, 2011, on her 95th birthday. Gayle Buchanan Karshner was born in her family's home on the Boulevard in Ashland, OR, August 29, 1916. She was the youngest of five children of William Edgar and Rose Kee Buchanan, the only child born in Oregon. Her parents had migrated west from Humansville, Missouri. Her father had been a schoolteacher but after marriage became a dentist.
Gayle always felt privileged to have the advantages of being raised in such a joyous, fun loving, happy, and talented family. The family moved to Eugene, OR, in 1922 to make it easier for all the children to attend the University of Oregon. Gayle attended Patterson Grammar School, University High School, and graduated from the U of O in 1938 with a BA in English/ Drama/ Education. She was President of the Associated Women Students, Secretary of her class, and selected for Mortar Board. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She spent the following two years attending Stanford University and Claremont Colleges in graduate study. Years later she received an MA degree in English at HSU.
Gayle met Don W. Karshner at Stanford, and they were married at her home in Eugene, Feb. 11, 1940. They spent the summer running the hikers' outpost camp on Lake of the Woods for Fallen Leaf Resort in the Sierra. In the fall of 1941 they moved to Arcata, CA, where Don joined the faculty of Humboldt State College as head of the Dept. of Speech and Drama. Gayle always worked with Don, helping with make-up and costumes. Students were always welcome in their home.
They lost their first child in May of 1942, but welcomed their son Gary Buchanan Karshner, born in Palo Alto, May 1943. When Gary was three months old, Don joined the Seabees to serve in WWII until the fall of 1945. At the invitation of President Arthur Gist, Gayle replaced Don on the faculty. She and John Van Duzer were the Speech/ Drama department during the war. During that time, Gayle also became Dean of Women briefly replacing Monica Hadley who had taken a pregnancy leave. Following the war, her second son, Warner William Karshner, was born August 12, 1946 in Palo Alto.
Her children were always Gayle's greatest pride and joy. She was active in PTA and was honored with a Life Membership in that organization for co-chairing the school bond campaign to rebuild Arcata High School after the old building was condemned. She served as "den mother" in Cub Scouts for each son, and made her home a gathering place for their friends.
The wartime service proved to be too much; Gayle succumbed to tuberculosis in January of 1947 and spent the next eight months isolated in sanitaria. Fortunately, she was one of the first patients to be treated with the newly discovered anti-biotic, streptomycin. It prepared her for three thoracic surgeries, and by August she was declared cured. She always felt particularly grateful to those who had made this recovery possible. She volunteered for the Lung Association, and wrote her story, "One Patient's Family" which was published in the Association Journal, and she was invited to attend the society's annual meeting to read her story at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
When her sons left home for college, she taught English at McKinleyville High School and Arcata High School for over ten years when she chose to retire to care for her husband, Don, who was ill. Don died in 1978. Following his death, she was invited to teach a workshop on "Adjustment for widows" at College of the Redwoods. This proved successful, and Gayle continued more workshops for several years, at the YWCA, and other locations. In later years, Gayle married long-time friend Stanley "Neb" Roscoe. They lived together happily for 25 years, traveling a great deal and sharing many interests, including writing, until he died in 2007. In 1979 she was asked to direct the Writers' Project for the Retired Senior Volunteer program. For seven years she coordinated statewide memoir writing contests for persons over 55 that proved to be very popular. Four volumes of selected entries were published. In 1979 Gayle formed writing groups to encourage older folks to write their memories. The Arcata group called themselves "The Silver Quills" and assumed a life of its own, remaining continuously active, meeting twice a month, to this day, even without Gayle's leadership. Urging older people to write their stories became Gayle's passion because so much social history comes from diaries and letters that today have been replaced by telephone calls and e-mails. Gayle enjoyed writing and leaves a large library bound "Story of the Buchanan Family" in several libraries in towns where the family had lived. She also authored "A Bell Rang in Uniontown", a history of the first hundred years of Arcata and its Methodist Church, 1994. This book won a prize for being the best church history in a four-year period. She also edited and published "Bearkiller", the story of the Karshner family written by her husband's uncle, Dr. Warner Karshner. Sales of this book help support the Paul Karshner Memorial Museum, a part of the school system, in Puyallup, WA. Active in the Humboldt County Historical Society, Gayle served as president for one year, and published many articles in the society's magazine, The Humboldt Historian. Gayle was known for her smile and humor and enjoyed the affection of a host of friends, young and old.
Gayle was predeceased by her parents, her siblings: Kee Groves, Edgar Buchanan, Kate Buchanan, and Lova Young. She had also lost her husband, Dr. Don. W. Karshner, and her second husband, Dr. Stanley N. Roscoe as well as her younger son, Dr. Warner William Karshner. She leaves her son Dr. Gary Karshner, San Antonio, TX, his daughters, Margaret Karshner, Seattle, WA and Katherine Karshner, Charlotte. NC; her daughter-in-law, Diane Nason Karshner, Gig Harbor, WA, and her sons, Eric Karshner, Park City, UT, and Brett Karshner, Seattle, WA. She also leaves her stepchildren, Cate Roscoe, Driggs, ID, Lee Roscoe Bragg, Eureka, CA, and Jack Roscoe, Arcata, and their spouses, children, and grandchildren, as well as her nephew and wife, Bernard and Gloria Young, Medford, OR, their children, and her niece and husband, Brooke and Lyt Constable, and son, New York City.
A celebration of Gayle's life will take place on Monday, September 5th at 10 am at the Arcata United Methodist Church, 1761 11th St., Arcata. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Humboldt Area Foundation or the charity of your choice.
Published in Times-Standard from Sep. 2 to Sep. 4, 2011
--------------------------------------------------------------
A photo of the headstone that Gayle shares with her husband, Don, and infant child in BillionGraves is the source for her burial location
Gayle Buchanan Karshner
August 29, 1916- August 29, 2011
Gayle Karshner passed away peacefully at her home on August 29, 2011, on her 95th birthday. Gayle Buchanan Karshner was born in her family's home on the Boulevard in Ashland, OR, August 29, 1916. She was the youngest of five children of William Edgar and Rose Kee Buchanan, the only child born in Oregon. Her parents had migrated west from Humansville, Missouri. Her father had been a schoolteacher but after marriage became a dentist.
Gayle always felt privileged to have the advantages of being raised in such a joyous, fun loving, happy, and talented family. The family moved to Eugene, OR, in 1922 to make it easier for all the children to attend the University of Oregon. Gayle attended Patterson Grammar School, University High School, and graduated from the U of O in 1938 with a BA in English/ Drama/ Education. She was President of the Associated Women Students, Secretary of her class, and selected for Mortar Board. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She spent the following two years attending Stanford University and Claremont Colleges in graduate study. Years later she received an MA degree in English at HSU.
Gayle met Don W. Karshner at Stanford, and they were married at her home in Eugene, Feb. 11, 1940. They spent the summer running the hikers' outpost camp on Lake of the Woods for Fallen Leaf Resort in the Sierra. In the fall of 1941 they moved to Arcata, CA, where Don joined the faculty of Humboldt State College as head of the Dept. of Speech and Drama. Gayle always worked with Don, helping with make-up and costumes. Students were always welcome in their home.
They lost their first child in May of 1942, but welcomed their son Gary Buchanan Karshner, born in Palo Alto, May 1943. When Gary was three months old, Don joined the Seabees to serve in WWII until the fall of 1945. At the invitation of President Arthur Gist, Gayle replaced Don on the faculty. She and John Van Duzer were the Speech/ Drama department during the war. During that time, Gayle also became Dean of Women briefly replacing Monica Hadley who had taken a pregnancy leave. Following the war, her second son, Warner William Karshner, was born August 12, 1946 in Palo Alto.
Her children were always Gayle's greatest pride and joy. She was active in PTA and was honored with a Life Membership in that organization for co-chairing the school bond campaign to rebuild Arcata High School after the old building was condemned. She served as "den mother" in Cub Scouts for each son, and made her home a gathering place for their friends.
The wartime service proved to be too much; Gayle succumbed to tuberculosis in January of 1947 and spent the next eight months isolated in sanitaria. Fortunately, she was one of the first patients to be treated with the newly discovered anti-biotic, streptomycin. It prepared her for three thoracic surgeries, and by August she was declared cured. She always felt particularly grateful to those who had made this recovery possible. She volunteered for the Lung Association, and wrote her story, "One Patient's Family" which was published in the Association Journal, and she was invited to attend the society's annual meeting to read her story at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
When her sons left home for college, she taught English at McKinleyville High School and Arcata High School for over ten years when she chose to retire to care for her husband, Don, who was ill. Don died in 1978. Following his death, she was invited to teach a workshop on "Adjustment for widows" at College of the Redwoods. This proved successful, and Gayle continued more workshops for several years, at the YWCA, and other locations. In later years, Gayle married long-time friend Stanley "Neb" Roscoe. They lived together happily for 25 years, traveling a great deal and sharing many interests, including writing, until he died in 2007. In 1979 she was asked to direct the Writers' Project for the Retired Senior Volunteer program. For seven years she coordinated statewide memoir writing contests for persons over 55 that proved to be very popular. Four volumes of selected entries were published. In 1979 Gayle formed writing groups to encourage older folks to write their memories. The Arcata group called themselves "The Silver Quills" and assumed a life of its own, remaining continuously active, meeting twice a month, to this day, even without Gayle's leadership. Urging older people to write their stories became Gayle's passion because so much social history comes from diaries and letters that today have been replaced by telephone calls and e-mails. Gayle enjoyed writing and leaves a large library bound "Story of the Buchanan Family" in several libraries in towns where the family had lived. She also authored "A Bell Rang in Uniontown", a history of the first hundred years of Arcata and its Methodist Church, 1994. This book won a prize for being the best church history in a four-year period. She also edited and published "Bearkiller", the story of the Karshner family written by her husband's uncle, Dr. Warner Karshner. Sales of this book help support the Paul Karshner Memorial Museum, a part of the school system, in Puyallup, WA. Active in the Humboldt County Historical Society, Gayle served as president for one year, and published many articles in the society's magazine, The Humboldt Historian. Gayle was known for her smile and humor and enjoyed the affection of a host of friends, young and old.
Gayle was predeceased by her parents, her siblings: Kee Groves, Edgar Buchanan, Kate Buchanan, and Lova Young. She had also lost her husband, Dr. Don. W. Karshner, and her second husband, Dr. Stanley N. Roscoe as well as her younger son, Dr. Warner William Karshner. She leaves her son Dr. Gary Karshner, San Antonio, TX, his daughters, Margaret Karshner, Seattle, WA and Katherine Karshner, Charlotte. NC; her daughter-in-law, Diane Nason Karshner, Gig Harbor, WA, and her sons, Eric Karshner, Park City, UT, and Brett Karshner, Seattle, WA. She also leaves her stepchildren, Cate Roscoe, Driggs, ID, Lee Roscoe Bragg, Eureka, CA, and Jack Roscoe, Arcata, and their spouses, children, and grandchildren, as well as her nephew and wife, Bernard and Gloria Young, Medford, OR, their children, and her niece and husband, Brooke and Lyt Constable, and son, New York City.
A celebration of Gayle's life will take place on Monday, September 5th at 10 am at the Arcata United Methodist Church, 1761 11th St., Arcata. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Humboldt Area Foundation or the charity of your choice.
Published in Times-Standard from Sep. 2 to Sep. 4, 2011
--------------------------------------------------------------
A photo of the headstone that Gayle shares with her husband, Don, and infant child in BillionGraves is the source for her burial location
August 29, 1916- August 29, 2011
Gayle Karshner passed away peacefully at her home on August 29, 2011, on her 95th birthday. Gayle Buchanan Karshner was born in her family's home on the Boulevard in Ashland, OR, August 29, 1916. She was the youngest of five children of William Edgar and Rose Kee Buchanan, the only child born in Oregon. Her parents had migrated west from Humansville, Missouri. Her father had been a schoolteacher but after marriage became a dentist.
Gayle always felt privileged to have the advantages of being raised in such a joyous, fun loving, happy, and talented family. The family moved to Eugene, OR, in 1922 to make it easier for all the children to attend the University of Oregon. Gayle attended Patterson Grammar School, University High School, and graduated from the U of O in 1938 with a BA in English/ Drama/ Education. She was President of the Associated Women Students, Secretary of her class, and selected for Mortar Board. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She spent the following two years attending Stanford University and Claremont Colleges in graduate study. Years later she received an MA degree in English at HSU.
Gayle met Don W. Karshner at Stanford, and they were married at her home in Eugene, Feb. 11, 1940. They spent the summer running the hikers' outpost camp on Lake of the Woods for Fallen Leaf Resort in the Sierra. In the fall of 1941 they moved to Arcata, CA, where Don joined the faculty of Humboldt State College as head of the Dept. of Speech and Drama. Gayle always worked with Don, helping with make-up and costumes. Students were always welcome in their home.
They lost their first child in May of 1942, but welcomed their son Gary Buchanan Karshner, born in Palo Alto, May 1943. When Gary was three months old, Don joined the Seabees to serve in WWII until the fall of 1945. At the invitation of President Arthur Gist, Gayle replaced Don on the faculty. She and John Van Duzer were the Speech/ Drama department during the war. During that time, Gayle also became Dean of Women briefly replacing Monica Hadley who had taken a pregnancy leave. Following the war, her second son, Warner William Karshner, was born August 12, 1946 in Palo Alto.
Her children were always Gayle's greatest pride and joy. She was active in PTA and was honored with a Life Membership in that organization for co-chairing the school bond campaign to rebuild Arcata High School after the old building was condemned. She served as "den mother" in Cub Scouts for each son, and made her home a gathering place for their friends.
The wartime service proved to be too much; Gayle succumbed to tuberculosis in January of 1947 and spent the next eight months isolated in sanitaria. Fortunately, she was one of the first patients to be treated with the newly discovered anti-biotic, streptomycin. It prepared her for three thoracic surgeries, and by August she was declared cured. She always felt particularly grateful to those who had made this recovery possible. She volunteered for the Lung Association, and wrote her story, "One Patient's Family" which was published in the Association Journal, and she was invited to attend the society's annual meeting to read her story at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
When her sons left home for college, she taught English at McKinleyville High School and Arcata High School for over ten years when she chose to retire to care for her husband, Don, who was ill. Don died in 1978. Following his death, she was invited to teach a workshop on "Adjustment for widows" at College of the Redwoods. This proved successful, and Gayle continued more workshops for several years, at the YWCA, and other locations. In later years, Gayle married long-time friend Stanley "Neb" Roscoe. They lived together happily for 25 years, traveling a great deal and sharing many interests, including writing, until he died in 2007. In 1979 she was asked to direct the Writers' Project for the Retired Senior Volunteer program. For seven years she coordinated statewide memoir writing contests for persons over 55 that proved to be very popular. Four volumes of selected entries were published. In 1979 Gayle formed writing groups to encourage older folks to write their memories. The Arcata group called themselves "The Silver Quills" and assumed a life of its own, remaining continuously active, meeting twice a month, to this day, even without Gayle's leadership. Urging older people to write their stories became Gayle's passion because so much social history comes from diaries and letters that today have been replaced by telephone calls and e-mails. Gayle enjoyed writing and leaves a large library bound "Story of the Buchanan Family" in several libraries in towns where the family had lived. She also authored "A Bell Rang in Uniontown", a history of the first hundred years of Arcata and its Methodist Church, 1994. This book won a prize for being the best church history in a four-year period. She also edited and published "Bearkiller", the story of the Karshner family written by her husband's uncle, Dr. Warner Karshner. Sales of this book help support the Paul Karshner Memorial Museum, a part of the school system, in Puyallup, WA. Active in the Humboldt County Historical Society, Gayle served as president for one year, and published many articles in the society's magazine, The Humboldt Historian. Gayle was known for her smile and humor and enjoyed the affection of a host of friends, young and old.
Gayle was predeceased by her parents, her siblings: Kee Groves, Edgar Buchanan, Kate Buchanan, and Lova Young. She had also lost her husband, Dr. Don. W. Karshner, and her second husband, Dr. Stanley N. Roscoe as well as her younger son, Dr. Warner William Karshner. She leaves her son Dr. Gary Karshner, San Antonio, TX, his daughters, Margaret Karshner, Seattle, WA and Katherine Karshner, Charlotte. NC; her daughter-in-law, Diane Nason Karshner, Gig Harbor, WA, and her sons, Eric Karshner, Park City, UT, and Brett Karshner, Seattle, WA. She also leaves her stepchildren, Cate Roscoe, Driggs, ID, Lee Roscoe Bragg, Eureka, CA, and Jack Roscoe, Arcata, and their spouses, children, and grandchildren, as well as her nephew and wife, Bernard and Gloria Young, Medford, OR, their children, and her niece and husband, Brooke and Lyt Constable, and son, New York City.
A celebration of Gayle's life will take place on Monday, September 5th at 10 am at the Arcata United Methodist Church, 1761 11th St., Arcata. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Humboldt Area Foundation or the charity of your choice.
Published in Times-Standard from Sep. 2 to Sep. 4, 2011
--------------------------------------------------------------
A photo of the headstone that Gayle shares with her husband, Don, and infant child in BillionGraves is the source for her burial location
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