Agnes Dorothy Oblander

Agnes Dorothy Oblander was born and raised in Verboort, Oregon, the sixth of 15 children of Albert & Mary Evers. The big family lived in a farmhouse just down the road from Visitation Church in Verboort. The farm and the church were the touchpoints of the family’s life. The days—even school days—could start astonishingly early, as chores had to be done. Mother recalled getting up in the cold dark hours to pick hops from plants soaked with dew, which made the job even colder. In the evening, the entire family gathered in one room and said the Rosary together. Weekends might find the women and girls from the extended family come together for a quilting bee.

Throughout her life, even after marrying and moving to town, Agnes would remain a farm girl, growing vegetables, fruits, and flowers as long as she had her own home.

World War II brought a lot of changes as men around the country were called to serve in places far from home. And a certain young former farm boy from Kansas signed up for the Coast Guard because he heard the food was better than in the other services. Homer Oblander was stationed at the Oregon coast, where he became friends with Norbert Krieger. When Norbert married his sweetheart Betty in Verboort, Homer came along to serve as best man. Homer, all of 19 years old, hit it off right away with the red-headed 16-year-old Agnes.

Years later, after the war, Homer proposed to then 21 year old Agnes and on September 11, 1947, they married. Looking at the wedding pictures, you see a shy but confident and beautiful young redhead standing proudly beside her young (former) sailor who maybe looked a little bit like a cross between Humphrey Bogart and Sean Connery. (Some of his genetic traits somehow apparently missed his sons!) Homer took a job with First National Bank of Oregon and he and Agnes lived in a number of cities as Homer was transferred from place to place. They finally settled into a home in Beaverton, where Agnes became a member of St. Cecilia Church in 1959.

Homer and Agnes had been married 60 years when he died in 2007. During their 60 years together, they accomplished more and traveled to more places than they could have possibly imagined growing up in their rural areas during the Great Depression.

Agnes always deferred to Homer, giving him credit for all they accomplished. However, as the years went by, it seems all the more evident that she matched him in both wisdom and strength. In so many ways, she was the moral rock upon which the family was built.

Agnes stayed in her longtime home until 2018, then moved into the Hearthstone at Murrayhill retirement community. There, she became fast friends with two other women known as "the other Agnes and Elizabeth."

Countless people have told the family in recent months how sweet and likable Agnes was. During a hospital stay last fall, Mom was due to be released to rehab, but the nurses didn't want to let her go because they enjoyed her so much.

Homer and Agnes built a family with four children: Don, Merle, Mary,and Patrick. These were followed by six grandchildren: Eric, Ryan,Carver, Kendal, Shin, and Aaron. And then Jackson, their first great-grandchild, brought a new light late in Agnes's life.

Agnes is survived by her siblings Neon Evers, Joseph Evers, Frederick Evers, and Norma Sue Peters; children Don Oblander (Eileen Gereghty), Mary Murray (Joseph), and Patrick Oblander (Yuko); Grandchildren Eric Oblander, Ryan Murray (Danielle), Carver Oblander, Kendal Murray, Shin Oblander, and Aaron Murray; and great-grandchild Jackson Murray.

She is predeceased by parents Albert and Mary Evers; siblings Anna, Ignatius, Adelbert, Florence, Peter, Edmund, Alvin, Eugene, Harry, and Vern; husband Homer Oblander; and son Merle Oblander.

We know that she looked forward to the day she would be reunited with Homer. And that understanding makes it easier for us as we bid her adieu.