Velda "Billie" Bell

Velda Ruth Bell (Billie, Grandma, Great-Grandma, Great-Great-Grandma) has started the next part of the “journey of life”. She left us in the afternoon on Sunday, November 28th, 2021. She left peacefully.

She started life in Sandpoint, Idaho in the early morning of March 26th, 1927. She was the eldest of seven children and she grew up during hard times. Her parents, Ben and Dollie, taught her that as long as you have love in your family, the struggles in life can be handled. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough space here to give those who didn’t know her a full picture of this remarkable woman’s 94 years on this earth. So, as a token, we offer a glimpse of the lady we love via a story she and dad had told us time and again – a story that tells volumes about her character, her commitment and her ability to love.

It was the fall of 1944 and she was now 17. World War II was still raging and her parents had moved to Spokane, Washington. Like many teenagers in her time, she enjoyed roller skating with her friends at the local roller rink - that is where she met the love of her life, Curly (his name was Robert, but all his friends called him Curly and that’s all she knew him by). As the story was told, Curly was minding his own business when this pretty young girl skated up to him and asked him to “save ladies choice”. The minute they locked eyes she knew there was something special about him (besides the fact that he had curly hair). They only went on that one face-to-face date (skating and then a stop at an ice-cream parlor before he had to return to the Navy base), but once they were able to exchange addresses, they wrote volumes of letters to each other. As their friendship grew, they continued to write even though “Curly” was reassigned to Camp Adair, Oregon and then to the Bremerton Navy Hospital in Washington. Scroll forward to the fall of 1945; Curly had already been in close combat in the Pacific Theater and the war was still very much a threat. The prospect of an extended separation was looming and they were in love, so they did the only smart thing two teenagers in love could do; Billie told her parents she was going to visit a cousin in Portland and went to see Curly instead. On the 22nd of April 1946 they were married in a quiet, very low budget ceremony. And that is how they started their life together: no expectation of support, next to nothing of physical value and an unknown future. What they did have was more love and commitment than anyone can imagine – the feelings and emotions they shared in those letters created a bond that carried them thru the next 68 years; thru two more wars (Korea and Vietnam) with deployments in-country that kept them apart for a year at a time, thru successes and disappointments, thru jubilation at the births of their seven children and thru the extreme sorrow that comes with the loss of loved ones.

Throughout her life she was a proud woman and a hard worker. Her family came first and her love for them never wavered. Many times throughout her life she worked outside the home to make sure her family was taken care of. She taught us that doing right may not always be the easiest path, but is always the correct path. She was passionate about her beliefs and instilled that passion in her entire extended family, and despite a myriad of health issues that attacked her throughout her life, her love for her family was always her highest priority.

Billie was preceded by her husband, Bob; and is survived by her seven children; one brother; eleven grandchildren; thirteen great-grandchildren; one great-great-grandchild; and a large extended family.

There will be a limited service at 2 PM at the First United Methodist Church, MICAH building, 680 State Street, Salem, Oregon on Thursday the 9th of December. Due to the Covid restrictions masks must be worn, distancing is required and there will not be a social gathering after the service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Brighton Hospice or your favorite Veteran’s organization in her name.