Thelma May (Clark) Draper

(Excerpted from HIGH FLIGHT, by pilot officer Gillespie Magee, RCAF, KIA 11 Dec 1941)

YAKIMA, WA – Our beloved mother, Thelma May (Clark) Draper passed away on Saturday, September 17, 2011 at Covenant House with her daughter, Patsy, at her side.

Mom was born March 21st, 1917 in Enderby, British Columbia, Canada, to Louis Lester and Clara May (Bailey) Clark, a proud descendant of a long line of pioneers to the North American continent, the Pacific Northwest, and the Okanagon Valley of British Columbia.

Mom grew up working hard in a family of hard workers. At the age of 12, she completed her eighth grade education and by age 13 she was living and working away from home. At the age of 19 she went to work at the Vernon Jubilee Hospital as a housekeeper where she remained until the start of World War II. While working at the hospital, she helped her mother and father buy a home and property in Falkland, B.C., where her parents spent the remainder of their years.

At the outbreak of World War II, Mom joined the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and was stationed in Eastern Canada, primarily the airbase at Gander, Newfoundland. After the war Mom completed her high school equivalency and entered the nursing program at the Royal Columbian Hospital in Vancouver, B.C.

In 1948, while visiting family in Stockton, California, Mom met our handsome father, Hubert H. Draper, Sr. The following year, after finishing her nursing education, she and Dad were married. Mom worked as an obstetrical nurse in Stockton. Around 1957, Mom and Dad moved the family to Idaho where Dad worked in the mines as a carpenter and Mom worked in the hospital at Wallace. Our brother, Perry, was born in Wallace. The next move took our family to Sedro-Woolley, Washington, where our sister, Clara, was born. While living in Sedro-Woolley, Mom became a very proud naturalized citizen of the United States and a steadfast Democrat. Mom worked at Northern State Hospital until 1973, when the state closed the hospital and she was relocated to Selah, Washington, near Yakima, where she retired from Yakima Valley School in 1980.

While raising us kids, Mom worked full-time outside the home, and at home she cleaned, cooked, canned, baked bread, grew a big garden and chauffeured us kids around. She worked ceaselessly and never complained. She was kind, generous, and tough as nails. She was a great and courageous lady who lived her life quietly and without fanfare.

Mom, you are truly an outstanding example of THE GREATEST GENERATION! We are so very proud of you and will miss you dearly.

Mom was preceded in death by our father in 1988, her parents, and brothers Earl and Edwin Clark, sisters Blanche Arnold and Ella Lavery, step-children Hubert H. Draper, Jr. and Maxine Messick; and an infant granddaughter, Stephanie Ann Murray.

She is survived by her 5 children: Preston Draper, Seoul, S. Korea; Patricia Murray (Craig Huntley), Selah, WA; Patrick (Celeste) Draper, Riverside, CA; Perry (Scarlett) Draper, Menifee, CA; and Clara (Les) Bunch, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. She is also survived by her grandchildren: Bob (Monica) Messick, Chuck (Debbie) Messick, & Mike Messick, and their children and grandchildren, all of California; Britni (Steve) Brozo, Salt Lake City, UT; Mary (Zane) Dale, and Meghan Murray, of Yakima and Erin Murray of Portland ,OR; Ross Draper, U.S. Army, Ft. Bragg, North Carolina; Arthur Draper, St. Petersburg, FL; Jason Draper, Seattle, WA; Rikki (Dale) Davis, Carnation, WA; Solomon and Captiva Draper, Riverside, CA; and Steph Heckman, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Step-grandchildren Jordan, Kaitlyn, and Taylor Duffy, and great–grandchildren: Layne Sires, Logan and Luke Dale, Natalie Davis and Olivia Draper. She is also survived by many wonderful nieces and nephews.

Our family would like to thank Dr. Ross Bethel, YVMH Hospice, and Covenant House, especially Tiffany, Jessica, and Andrea, for their loving care of mom in her final months.

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 4 at Keith and Keith Ninth Avenue Chapel. The funeral will be at noon Oct. 5 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Selah. Burial will follow in West Hills Memorial Park.

If desired, charitable contributions can be made in Mom’s memory to ChildFund International (formerly Christian Children’s Fund) or to the pet rescue organization of your choice.