Maxine Beatrice Bassani

On January 29, 2013 at age 88, Maxine joyfully left this earth to join her Lord and beloved members of her family. She was born in Yakima at the old St. Elizabeth Hospital May 31, 1924 to Muriel and Dave Klassen. When she was about a year old, the family moved to Grandview to a home in town. They later moved to a ranch on Olmstead Road north of Grandview where she lived until she was married. There were many family members on her mother’s side living in the area and she enjoyed several special relationships including some cousins and especially her grandmother, Lillian Beckes.

Growing up on the farm was a wonderful experience. Maxine and her brother Don, 3 years younger, always had many pets, including dogs, cats, chickens, pigs, cows and a horse to ride. Maxine had a huge White Leghorn rooster named Henry who, along with the neighbor’s Sheltie, rode along on the horse with her. Henry did not like Maxine’s mom and attacked her with his spurs from behind one day. Maxine was sure her mom was thinking either the frying pan or stew pot for Henry!

Don and Maxine’s parents were pillars in their community and taught them good morals and provided wonderful examples for proper living and dealing with others. Grandview was a great community in which to grow up.

Maxine was up very early every morning to ride her horse for an hour or two before breakfast and school. She had thousands of acres of sagebrush available (now the Roza) for riding and brought home various things, such as bull snakes and cactus blooms.

Piano lessons started before first grade and she played for many things at school, church and community affairs. She also sang and was a member of a trio that placed at the top in adjudication. There were always many visitors at the ranch and so much to do. Of the cats, several wore doll clothes and rode in her doll carriage. She found a lost kitten in the orchard and fed it with a small bottle. She named it Mary. Eventually it became obvious that Mary was a male! He grew very large and continued to drink out of a large bottle, laying on his back and pushing up the bottom of the bottle with his hind feet. Everyone who came to the ranch wanted to see ‘Mary’ drink from his bottle.

Maxine was very valuable on the ranch in the summer, learning to keep house and cook at an early age because her mother was supervising the crew who picked the various fruits. She was encouraged to go to camp however. Camp Roganunda served as Campfire (girls) camp and church camp before Camp Ghormley was established. She had good friends at both and always rode horses, taking blue ribbons in competition. She was in one of the first groups to attend Ghormley, serving as camp pianist. She had many friends among staff and other campers. Some of those friendships from earlier years were still on-going.

A music scholarship was awarded to her at Central Washington College of Education (now CWU) in Ellensburg and she went on to major in pipe organ. The war was on-going and the campus was lacking in male students. Then the Air Force moved in making a barracks out of Kamola Hall where Maxine lived. She then moved to Sue Lombard Hall where she was President. She met her husband-to-be, Victor Bassani, who was a Cadet Major on campus. Circumstances kept him in Ellensburg longer than usual and they became engaged before he moved on. They were married in 1946 and spent the first year at Cornell University where he had been going to school when he went into the service. They returned to Washington and the following year, Vic was a senior at WSU and Maxine took her fifth year at CWCE to get her teaching certificate. They settled in Yakima with Vic working with the State Horticultural Dept. and Maxine teaching kindergarten at Hoover School. She also taught at the Ruth Childs School (now MLK). Vic eventually took a position at H. R. Spinner Corp., serving as President until he retired.

Alan was born when they lived in the Morken Court on Naches Avenue. He was two when the family moved into the home they built on Avalanche Avenue. Cary was born in 1957 and Maxine was so happy with her family and her life.

Music continued to be a big part of her life. She was very involved with Vic’s golf tournaments, Alan’s trumpet playing and then his go-kart racing and Cary’s own music, singing and piano. She sang in the Philharmonic Choral Society, a special chorus at the Wilson School of Music and Bel Canto. She became very involved in Sweet Adelines. Her teaching and directing eventually led to the Chorus taking 2nd place in regional competition. She served as Regent of Lucky Region 13 for 2 years. Region 13 was made up of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, part of Montana, three Canadian provinces and Alaska. While Regent, she, with the help of many, put together sets of 19 guides for all offices and committee chairs for all the chapters in Region 13. These guides caught the eye of the International Organization. She also sang in a championship quartet called “The Yakimoms”. They were featured in many Sweet Adeline and Barbershop shows all around the Northwest. She also continued doing solos in her church and community.

The family moved to Terrace Heights in 1964 and once again there were horses, dogs, cats, chickens and peacocks. The stable was built first, then the new house with marvelous landscaping all around the house and on two sides of the stable which Maxine cared for herself. She cherished the wonderful views of the Valley, Mt. Adams, Mt. Rainier and the Cascades. She became a gourmet cook, froze and canned produce, made jams and jellies and baked bread, cakes and pies. She dearly loved her show horse, a Tennessee Walker stallion named Sun’s Me Too. His grandsire was Midnight Sun, twice world champion.

Her church life was always very important to her in younger years as a member of Christian Endeavor and in later years, serving in various ways including singing in the choir for over 30 years and playing hand bells.

She became very involved with the Yakima Symphony Orchestra in 1970, serving as President of the Board for 2 years, helping to put together all the things that make everything work today. She was Subscription Chair, filling 3 increasingly larger halls. She also served as Historian for 30 years, putting together ten and a half very large scrapbooks. She also just put together a condensed written history titled “128 Years of Orchestra History in Yakima” going back to 1882. Singing in the Yakima Symphony chorus was a delight for over thirty years. She volunteered for several organizations in town including the American Red Cross. They offered her a job which she turned down in favor of working with the symphony. She took part in several Warehouse theater productions: Fiddler on the Roof and Cinderella as music director and was Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music.

She was delighted to welcome Mary Jo and then Linda into the family. Maxine was always very grateful to Mary Jo for all the things that she did for her in later years.

Losing Vic and then 3 years later losing their son Cary were devastating losses, but she carried on. She adored grandchildren Christina and Ian and spent as much time with them as possible. Family was always a priority. Several medical conditions eventually led to Maxine moving into Living Care Retirement Community. She missed the ranch terribly and was never completely happy being away from it. She was always very pleased to be living in such a beautiful area on this earth and was always grateful to her ancestors for choosing this valley. She spent many hours in the mountains and loved camping at Ohanapecosh.

She was preceded in death by her husband Victor and their younger son Cary. She is survived by her son Alan, his wife Mary Jo and their daughter Christina of Yakima, her daughter-in-law Linda and her son Ian of Illinois. She also leaves behind many extended family members and a few dear, dear friends. She asked that instead of memorial flowers, that you take flowers to someone living and spend time with that person. As Maxine, Cary, Linda and Ian always closed every phone call, don’t hesitate another moment to go to your loved ones and tell them, “I love you”.

Memorials may be sent to;

The Yakima Symphony orchestra

32 No. 3rd Street Suite 333

Yakima WA, 98901

Arrangements are in the hands of Keith & Keith Funeral Home. A memorial service will be held at First Presbyterian Church, 9 So 8th Ave., Yakima on Saturday, February 9, 2013 at 2:00 pm.