Mr. Allen Warren Ames

Allen W. Ames, Jr. was born July 13, 1943 in Camden, NJ to Theresa and Allen Ames. He lived in Pennsauken, N.J. throughout boyhood, where he developed a life long interest in all things out-of-doors. Before his father died, Al spent many happy hours fishing with his father, developing skills, knowledge and patience for that sport that continued to give him great pleasure throughout his adult life. He and his 2 brothers, Robert and Gary, grew up during years when kids were free to explore, play and interact with little adult supervision and Al treasured that opportunity for freedom lost to the current generation of kids. Al served 4 years in the Air Force where he was a Morse code operator and stationed in Turkey. He married Marie Beck upon his return. They had 2 girls, Colleen and Jennifer, who pre-deceased him in 1992 and 2013 respectively. Al entered civil service as a state Park Ranger at Washington Crossing State Park on the Delaware River in 1971 and retired as Chief Ranger at the same park in 1993. He and Marie were divorced in 1982 and he married Pam Francis in1989, gaining a 7 yr. old stepson, Ivalle Noel, in the process. Al, Pam and Ivalle moved to Medford, OR in 1997, fulfilling a years-long dream of living in the west for Al. Al fished the Rogue, Smith and Chetco rivers for about 10 years before failing health put a stop to that. In recent years, he collected art, listened to Jackie Evancho and spent hours on the internet researching topics and places that caught his interest. He was a thinker, curious about everything. He also had deep compassion for people whose lives were troubled and difficult, especially Native Americans. Al died on Tuesday, Dec 13, 2016 at Rogue Regional Medical Center after a months-long battle with serious lung disease. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to one of the charities he supported: Southwest Indian Foundation, Nature Conservancy or Death With Dignity. A memorial service is planned for summer 2017 on the southern Oregon Coast. Interment will be at Hillcrest Memorial Park.