Friday, Dec. 30, was officially Glenn County Sheriff Richard Warren’s last day of work at the GCSO.
Lt. Justin Gibbs, who was elected sheriff in June, is scheduled take office on Monday, Jan. 2. Gibbs, however, has been the acting sheriff for weeks now, the result of a serious motorcycle crash from which Warren has been recovering.
Shortly before 4 p.m. on Friday, Sheriff Warren, whose call sign is Adam-1, was heard contacting the Glenn County Sheriff’s Communications Center: “Glenn County, Adam-1.”
“Adam-1,” replied the dispatcher.
“I would just like to say,” said Sheriff Warren, “I am very proud of this agency, and impressed with the people that I serve with. The women and men of the Glenn County Sheriff’s Office are some of the finest I have ever known. They truly lived up to our motto: commitment to service, dedication to community. Break.”
A moment later, he continued, “It is bittersweet, but I would like to say it’s been an honor to serve the community of Glenn County and for the final time, I am 10-10 [off-duty].”
Seconds later, responses from Glenn County Sheriff’s personnel and one from the Orland Police Department began to be received:
“Adam-1, on behalf of the sheriff’s office and the citizens of Glenn County, we thank you for your service. You have dedicated over 35 years to the community, and we have been lucky to share it with you. We … wish you a long and happy retirement. You will be missed. Adam-1, you are 10-10 and retired.”
Another member of the GCSO said, “Adam-1, 10-10, thank you for your service.”
Patrol Deputy Paul-2 remarked, “Adam-1,… thank you for your service. Enjoy your retirement.”
Paul-3 also said, “Adam-1,… thank you for your service.”
Another deputy commented, “Thank you for your service. It’s been an honor.”
Paul-6 also thanked Sheriff Warren for his service, as did still another deputy.
A member of the Orland Police Department said, “Adam-1, 500 units, thanks for your service. Congratulations.”
Edward-12, an evidence technician, remarked, “Adam-1, congrats, and good luck on all your future endeavors.”
Victor-9, also a part of the GCSO team, commented, “Adam-1,… thank you for your service. Enjoy your retirement.”
And the Glenn County Sheriff’s Animal Control and Community Service Officer said, “Adam-1, 128, thank you for your service.”
Finally, the following message was posted on the Facebook page for the Glenn County Sheriff’s Office:
“Thank you for your service, your dedication and your leadership, Sheriff Warren!
“Sheriff Warren completed his final day on the job and provided us with his final radio transmission and 10-10 goodbye.
“We want to thank you for your more than 30 years of service in law enforcement.
“You have shown a dedication to the badge and a desire to protect our community like few others. That professionalism has helped the entire community.
“Congratulations on your many accomplishments. Your career has been truly inspiring and as you retire you should be very proud of everything you’ve achieved.
“You exemplify our motto of Commitment to Service, Dedication to Community.
Following a difficult illness and an extended hospitalization, Joel Danley died on Friday, Dec. 9, 2022. He was born to Newland “Carmon” and Ellen (Newhouse) Danley on Oct. 9, 1952, and enjoyed growing up on the family farm near Willows.
He attended Willows schools, graduating from Willows High School in 1970, and attended Shasta College and CSU Chico.
He spent his entire life doing what he was passionate about: farming and spending time with his family. He also supported his church (Country Bible), and Providence Christian School, where his kids all attended.
He had his pilot’s license and loved flying and aviation history, as well as camping, hiking and fly fishing.
He is survived by his wife of 33 years, Jenyce (Hiebert); sons Micah and Seth; daughter Anneka; sisters Jan (Than) Williams and Loree (Thad) Stephen; brother Alan (Lee Andrea); numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins; and his best friend, Gary Rumiano.
A celebration of Joel’s life is planned for 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7, at the Providence Christian School Gym, 6290 County Road 12, Orland.
In lieu of flowers, please know that Joel would just want you to save your money! However, if you feel drawn to donate, he always liked supporting Providence Christian School.
Robert “Bob” Edmund Martin of Willows died at Glenn Medical Center in Willows on Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022. He was born in Ferndale to Leslie and Mary Martin in 1930.
In his youth, he participated in Future Farmers of America, which laid the foundation for his long life as a dairyman and farmer. In 1948, he was named FFA’s State Farmer.
After graduating in 1948 from Ferndale High School, he went to work on his uncle’s dairy until 1950, when he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He served in the Marines for five years, including one year of service in Korea.
He moved to Willows in 1955 and married Doris Hirz, his wife of 67 years. He resided in Willows ever since, operating a dairy while raising his nine children.
After turning over day-to-day dairy and farming operations to his sons, he continued to help them well into his 80s. In his later years he started a new business, recycling scrap metal, which kept his mind sharp.
He always knew the current price of copper and other metals and was excellent at estimating the weight of a load of scrap. He worked on scrap until after his 90th birthday, cleaning up his own farmyard as well as many neighbors’ yards.
He also had several hobbies and interests. He enjoyed vintage cars, especially Fords. His pride and joy was restoring a 1941 Ford flatbed truck.
He collected belt buckles, pocketknives and coins. He could whistle, yodel, and play the harmonica. In his final years became quite adept at jigsaw puzzles.
In 2012, he wrote a book about his Korean War experience. The book was later published by the Ferndale Museum.
He subscribed to his hometown newspaper, The Ferndale Enterprise, his entire adult life. He was a member of St. Monica’s Catholic Church, the VFW Post 1770, and the Ferndale Museum.
He was well known among his neighbors as one who would lend a hand and share wisdom from his experience as a dairyman and farmer. He took special delight in touring visitors around his family’s farming operations.
He knew so many people and had so many friends, he will be sorely missed.
He died peacefully at Glenn Medical Center in Willows, with his wife by his side and three generations of family members gathered nearby.
He is survived by his wife, Doris; sister Marie Bugbee; children Paul Martin (Tina), Suzan Couto (Frank), Carl Martin (Sharon), Barbara Eikmeier (Dale), Dale Martin (Carol), Lain Martin (Sandra), Yvonne Mayberry (Craig), Dean Martin (Susie) and Dora Martin; 20 grandchildren; 22 great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Leslie and Mary Martin; brother Leslie Martin, Jr.; and sisters Jane Guileri and Rosemary Nielsen.
His family wishes to thank his caregivers and doctors, who gave him such compassionate care, especially over the past 1-1/2 years.
A Rosary is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 4, at St. Monica’s Catholic Church in Willows. A Funeral Mass is planned for 10 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 5, also at St. Monica’s Catholic Church in Willows.
Graveside services are to follow at the Willows Cemetery, Veterans section. A reception and celebration of life are planned to immediately follow at the St. Monica Parish Hall.
Funeral arrangements are under the direction of F.D. Sweet and Son of Willows.
Memorial contributions may be made in memory of Robert Martin to St. Monica’s Catholic Church Building Fund, VFW Post 1770, St Jude’s Children Hospital, the Ferndale Museum, or any favorite charity.
With her family by her side, Brenda Lou Baker died peacefully the morning of Friday, Dec. 16, 2022. She fought a hard fight and lived every last moment of her life to the fullest, checking items off her bucket list and being with family.
She was born on April 13,1959.
As a funeral arranger at F.D. Sweet and Son Funeral Home, she found her passion in helping others during their sad times. With care and love, she helped so many people through their toughest times.
She is survived by her loving husband of 40 years, Charles Baker of Willows; children Marsha (Buck) Squier of Willows, David (Kristie) of Arizona, and Brandy Chandar of Willows; grandchildren Joshua (Santana) Baker, Bucky Squier, Allison Baker, Mary Squier, Jessica Abbott, Charlie Squier, Brody Abbott, Bailey Abbot, and Harley Chandar; mother Bonnie Warren; sisters Carolyn Beddow, and Linda Neuhauer; and many other family members.
She was preceded in death by her two fathers; two brothers; and grandson Hunter Thornton.
“At this time,” said her loved ones, “we would like to thank everyone for their continuous support through her battle against cancer, and all the thoughts and prayers.”
A celebration of life is being planned for after the holidays, on Saturday, Feb. 18, time and location to be announced.
Longtime readers of The Sacramento Valley Mirror may remember the letters to the newspaper’s religion editor (yours truly, until mid-January of 2021) written by Leonard Burkhardt.
He wrote to The Mirror almost weekly from 1997 (perhaps a year or so earlier) to 2018 (perhaps a year or so later). His “Religion Soapboxes,” as his letters were called, numbered somewhere around 1,000.
When he began submitting letters to The Mirror, he was living in the Redding, Calif., area. In later years, he was living in Niles, Ill., a village adjacent to northeast Chicago.
This reporter became acquainted with Burkhardt long before either of us began writing for The Mirror. In the early 1990s, we both began volunteering at the Redding Feminist Health Center, an abortion clinic.
Burkhardt, who was only about 70 at the time, helped escort clients past the abortion protesters, while I worked to divide various groups of protesters (Catholics and fundamentalist Protestants, for instance) and distract various protesters by debating religion with them.
Interestingly, when Mirror Publisher Tim Crews was in court, facing jail time for refusing to reveal the sources for one of his reports, both Burkhardt and one prominent abortion protester were there to support Crews. As I pointed out at the time, when two people with such otherwise opposing political views agree that the legal system’s actions are endangering the First Amendment, it’s a pretty good indication that the court is making a serious blunder.
In addition to these encounters, I also met with Burkhardt at such Redding-area gatherings as two or three National Day of Prayer protests, a solstice celebration for Shasta County atheists and other freethinkers, a picnic or two for the same group of unbelievers, and some other events.
Leonard Burkhardt died peacefully in Chicago, Ill., on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. He was born in Chicago to Sam and Bessie Burkhardt on March 7, 1922, during the Roaring Twenties.
In 1930, during the Great Depression, he and his family moved to Los Angeles. From 1942 to 1945, he served in the U.S. Army, spending much of World War II in strategically important Panama.
On Nov. 30, 1946, he married Mildred “Millie” Stein, his “kindred spirit.” As the obituary in The Redding Record Searchlight stated, the Burkhardts “had the admirable quality of doing what is right, not what is comfortable, often stepping out from the crowd.
“They led by example, with kindness and unselfishness.”
After World War II, Burkhardt worked during the day and went to school at night. According to The Record Searchlight, in 1958, some 18 years after he took his first post-high school, pre-war courses, he graduated with a degree in education.
He taught for six years before settling in Redding in 1964, where he accepted a position teaching the high school district’s moderately handicapped students. He taught there for 20-plus years.
During summers, also for 20-plus years, he served as the arts and crafts director at Camp Castanoan, a camp for children and adults with physical and/or developmental disabilities in Santa Clara County.
Burkhardt had an interesting habit of being in the right place at the right time to rescue people. Skilled in first aid, he twice saved people in horrific car accidents, and once rescued a tied-up custodian, the victim of a robbery.
Burkhardt was always ready with a joke or a poem, and while not aggressive in an economic sense, he was quite the opposite when it came to expressing his beliefs. His scrapbooks are filled with some 200 letters to the editor published in newspapers on such subjects as gun control, pollution, religion, American Indian and farmworker rights, press freedoms, etc.
But nothing touched the nerve of Burkhardt’s outrage and eloquence as did the Vietnam War. “His words were harsh and designed to disturb,” stated his obituary in The Record Searchlight.
He was also a frequent participant in anti-war parades, marches, and silent vigils, carrying anti-war signs, which he also displayed near his home and on his car. “I didn’t keep my views a secret,” he said.
Burkhardt participated in many organizations as a member or board member, including the ACLU, American Field Service, American Red Cross, Boy Scouts, Council for Exceptional Children, Democratic Party, NAACP, The Arc, Unitarians, United Nations Association, his synagogue, and prisoner support groups.
He and his wife also harbored homeless teenagers and abused children, and, as he once related in one of his “Soapboxes” in The Mirror, the couple provided sanctuary for legal and illegal immigrants, many fleeing for their lives.
An advocate for world peace, he once said, “If we had exerted ourselves here on Earth, we could have created a Garden of Eden. Instead, we seem hell-bent on destruction.”
He is survived by his children, Sam, Dave, and Judy; grandchildren Jacob and Rachel; sisters-in-law Nila and Marsha; and nephews and nieces Lewis, Paul, Sara, Jenny, and Gareth. He was preceded in death by his wife of 66 years, Millie, who died in 2012.
His loved ones recommend that readers “help continue Leonard’s humanitarian legacy by doing your own kindness or donating to your favorite charity.”
By early 2018, Mirror Publisher Tim Crews was growing weary of running opinion pieces (columns and letters) on the religion page, and he began “cutting and pasting” national news stories for the page. As a result, some of Burkhardt’s later letters did not get printed.
One of those letters, written on Feb. 21, 2018, follows:
“Religion Editor:
“I write this as news broke about not unexpected profiteering from construction of the ridiculous wall, planned to discourage Latino neighbors from swarming too easily into our sacred lands.
“Walls have been constructed for defensive measures down through the ages. Romans built a wall in northern Britannia to keep Scots out; the ancient Chinese (with plenty of cheap labor) built the world’s longest, most massive defensive wall; and just across Rome’s Tiber River, in the Middle Ages, a wall was built to defend the Eternal City from barbaric attacks.
“Unfortunately, we no longer enjoy the free labor that those countries had in the past. In addition, we are becoming heavily over-budgeted in many areas.
“This reminds me of my own situation when I lived between Redding and Palo Cedro, in Shasta County. At that time, I had two innovative dogs who tested my resolve with their doggone tactics in the adequately fenced yard where they played.
“Niki would dig under the fence while Mamie could, surprisingly, climb over the fence!
“Many of us have been told, in church-related stories, that the ethnic Jew, Saint Peter, diligently guards the Pearly Gates at the entrance to Heaven. If you are as inquisitive as I am, you might have wondered whether celestial walls surround God’s Heaven.
“If not, then why have a gate? And if such a wall does exist, is it to keep good souls in or bad spirits out?
“On another topic, if you or I go to different lands, our names still remain the same. Why is it then that the supposed One-and-Only-God has a different name (or even names) with each religious group?
“In Greece, the chief god (of many) was Zeus, while among Romans he was called Jupiter; Osiris was the head god among numerous Egyptian deities; Mazda, I believe, was a leading god of light for ancient Persians; and Dagon was the principal creator of Phoenicians.
“Among Germans, He is called Gott. There are four words used in Hebrew that mean God: Adonai, El, Elohim, and Yahweh.
“In addition, Jehovah’s Witnesses, of course, still pronounce the four Hebrew consonants from which we get Yahweh as Jehovah!
“I ask you, if you were the real God, wouldn’t you want all your worshippers to know your true name, or are the names infinite, like everything else may be in an infinite universe?
With her loving family at her bedside, Natibida Joan Perez died at her Orland home on Friday, Dec. 9, 2022. She was born in Midland, Texas, to Angelita and Cirilo Ramirez on July 24, 1938.
She enjoyed baking, working in her garden with her flowers, and being a grandma. She worked in the field and various other jobs, then in her later years worked for Glenn County schools in the cafeteria for many years.
For many years, she was a volunteer for the Senior Thrift Shop and Altar Society. She was always there whenever needed to give a helping hand.
She is survived by her husband, Ricardo Perez of Orland; daughters Luz Ortega of Bakersfield, Rachel Patrick of Austin, Texas, and Concepcion Wilson of Orland; sisters Joan Ramirez of Corning, Charlene Orduno of Corning, Trinidad Chavez of Hamilton City; brother Mingo Ramirez of Willows; grandchildren Amanda, Brianna, and Daniel Ortega, Monica, Veronica, and Rocco Patrick, Jessica and Jedidiah Pluto, Sam Saldana, Sid Counts, Stevie Pavelich, Nathaniel Saldana, Leslie Cowee, Angelica Perez, Victoria Diaz, and Mika Wilson; and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; son Ruben Saldana; daughters Rebecca Saldana and Angelita Cowee; brother Jessie Ramirez; and sisters Rita Gonzalez and Jenny Saavedra.
A Mass is scheduled for celebration at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7, at St. Dominic’s Catholic Church, 822 A Street, Orland. A Celebration of Life is to follow at the parish hall immediately after the Mass.
Here are the latest bookings from the Glenn County Jail. Remember: Everyone accused of a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Friday, Dec. 16:
1:17 a.m., at the Glenn County Jail, inmate Sarah Jane Hoxie, 37, of Chico, was found to have a warrant alleging possession of a controlled substance, and possession of a narcotic controlled substance (both misdemeanors). Bail was set at $5,000.
6:45 p.m., Paul Everette Choquette, 40, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging violation of a court order to prevent domestic violence (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $10,000. He was taken into custody on Highway 162 at the canal by a California Highway Patrol officer.
Saturday, Dec. 17:
12:44 p.m., Vanessa Aurora Montoya, 28, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging infliction of corporal injury on a spouse or ex-spouse (a felony), and violation of a court order to prevent domestic violence (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $30,000. She was taken into custody at 600 North Humboldt Avenue, apt. #164, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
7:34 p.m., Jose Guadalupe Velediaz-Quintana, 35, of Chico, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, and driving while under the influence of alcohol (both misdemeanors). Bail was set at $10,000. He was taken into custody on Highway 32 at Los Robles Avenue, Hamilton City, by a California Highway Patrol officer.
Sunday, Dec. 18:
1:13 a.m., David Todd Moreno, 62, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs (a misdemeanor), driving while under the influence of alcohol (a misdemeanor), and bringing drugs or alcohol into a prison (a felony). Bail was set at $20,000. He was taken into custody at 137 Sierra Street, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
10:57 a.m., Juan Daniel Escobar-Venegas, 22, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging evading a peace officer with wanton disregard for safety (a felony), obstructing or resisting a public service officer (a misdemeanor), driving without a license (a misdemeanor), and improper display of license plates (an infraction). Bail was set at $35,000. He was taken into custody on Highway 99, south of County Road 53, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
4:49 p.m., Jason Lee Benson, 45, of Corning, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on a warrant alleging failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge. Bail was set at $10,000. He was taken into custody on North Humboldt Avenue, south of the Baymont Inn, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
5:03 p.m., Wayne Clifford Williamson, 52, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence, and obstructing or resisting a public service officer (all misdemeanors). Bail was set at $15,000. He was taken into custody at 6805 County Road 19, Orland, by a California Highway Patrol officer.
Monday, Dec. 19:
1:06 p.m., Christopher James Hobbs, 44, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging felony violation of probation. Bail was set at $35,000. He was taken into custody at 817 Newport Avenue, apt. #37, by an Orland police officer.
7:35 p.m., Thomas Joseph Flynn, 33, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging violation of a court order to prevent domestic violence (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $5,000. He was taken into custody on County Road 20 by an Orland police officer.
8:16 p.m., Michael Jacob Abel, 23, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of any drug (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $5,000. He was taken into custody on County Road 20, west of County Road K, by a California Highway Patrol officer.
10:25 p.m., Brandi Michelle Charmbury, 54, of Gridley, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging possession of a controlled substance, and possession of controlled substance paraphernalia (both misdemeanors). Bail was set at zero. She was taken into custody on Eighth Street at Newville Road by an Orland police officer.
Tuesday, Dec. 20:
2:42 p.m., Albert Pulido, 53, of Orland, was committed to the Glenn County Jail without bail for charges alleging battery, and battery on a spouse, ex-spouse, date, etc. (both misdemeanors). He was taken into custody at the Willows Superior Court by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
4:07 p.m., Clark Daniel Schreiber, 41, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on a warrant alleging stalking (a felony). Bail was set at zero. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
10:28 p.m., Johnathan Perry Bush, 35, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging possession of burglary tools (a misdemeanor), peeking into an inhabited building (a misdemeanor), possession of a controlled substance in a jail or prison (a felony), and possession of controlled substance paraphernalia (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $20,000. He was taken into custody at 6203 Highway 162, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
Wednesday, Dec. 21:
8:33 a.m., at the Glenn County Jail, inmate Neil William Schweitzer, 40, of Clearlake, was found to have a warrant alleging having an improperly attached registration tab (an infraction), driving with a suspended license (a misdemeanor), driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence (a misdemeanor), driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence and refusing to take a chemical test (a misdemeanor), and being a restricted driver and operating a vehicle without an interlock device (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $5,000.
12:57 p.m., Brandon Edward Lee, 35, of Willows, was committed to the Glenn County Jail without bail for charges alleging misdemeanor violation of probation. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
1:53 p.m., at the Glenn County Jail, William Donald Jarman, 33, of Willows, was found to have warrants alleging driving with a license suspended for reckless driving, failure to appear after giving a written promise, driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence, possession of controlled substance paraphernalia, and failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge (all misdemeanors). Total bail was set at $11,000.
7:30 p.m., Jose Juan Robledo Lopez, 43, of Fresno, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on a bail bond surrender for charges alleging failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge. Bail was set at $25,000. He was taken into custody at 3511 Del Paso Road, Sacramento, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
10:33 p.m., Jared Ian Reusser, 39, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, driving while under the influence of alcohol, and driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence (all misdemeanors), and a warrant alleging public intoxication, and failure to appear after giving a written promise (both misdemeanor). Total bail was set at $20,000. He was taken into custody on Fifth Street at Cherry Street, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
These were the words of Larry Chaney, posted on Facebook at about 4:46 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 24, just hours after a fire destroyed his trailer in northeast Willows.
At approximately 10:45 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 23, the Willows Fire Department was dispatched to a report of a structure fire at 860 North Plumas Street.
At first, it was described as an outbuilding that was fully involved, but it soon became apparent that it was a trailer.
At 10:54 p.m., the Orland and Artois Fire Departments were called to render mutual aid.
Then, at 11:17 p.m., the Bayliss Fire Department was contacted for its water tender.
At 1:08 a.m. on Saturday, the Willows Fire Department posted on its Facebook page, “All Willows Personnel released, incident terminated.”
About two hours later, Larry Chaney posted on a Willows Facebook page that it was his trailer that burned.
At 4:46 a.m., he posted that he lost everything he owned, then he added, “And [it] looks like someone did it intentionally.”
He ended his post with, “Hopefully my trail cam is salvageable to get [the] SD card from it.”
Longtime Willows resident Milford Colin (Mel) Boggan died on Thursday, Dec. 15, 2022, in Tacoma, Wash., while visiting his daughters. The eldest of four sons, he was born in Willows to Milford and Margaret Boggan on March 28, 1935.
He had a great childhood growing up in Willows and had many friends whom he cherished his entire life. He attended schools in Willows and was on the Willows High School football and boxing teams.
He became the father of his first daughter on Oct. 19, 1952, in Willows.
He moved to Redding California in 1953 and attended Shasta College, getting a degree in engineering. He played on the Shasta College football team and was employed by the Redding Truckstop.
While living in Redding, he met and married the love of his life, Le Ann, on Nov. 24, 1955. Together they had three daughters.
In 1961, he moved his family back to his hometown of Willows and began his career for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, for the Mendocino National Forest. He loved his career and all those he worked with in the engineering department and enjoyed helping with their annual Buck Feed held at the Elks Lodge.
He was affectionately known as Boggie by his colleagues and friends. In later years, he chose to be referred to as “Mel.”
In 2019, his wife Le Ann died after 64 years of a fun and loving marriage.
He was a member of the Elks Lodge for 45 years and served as a commissioner for the Willows Rural Fire Department. He loved road trips with his family, hunting, fishing, golfing, woodworking, playing his guitar, the Great Outdoors, and hosting barbecues.
He was known for his good looks, great sense of humor, teasing, joking around, and always telling a funny story about himself. He was someone you could always rely on to drop everything he was doing to come help out a friend or family in need.
He was a fan of all sports, especially the San Francisco 49ers.
He retired from the U.S. Forest Service in 1990 after 30 years of federal employment. He was then employed by good friends Squeaks Whitney and Don Lampe as a surveyor.
He also worked for his sons-in-law John and David during spring tractor driving and fall rice harvest. In full retirement, he enjoyed spending time with his family, maintaining his large yard and cutting up wood with his chainsaw.
For years he enjoyed his morning coffee with his buddies, often joking, “We are solving the world’s problems.”
On March 5, 2019, he attended the 49th Northern California Sports Association dinner, where his 1953 Willows High School football team was inducted into the Hall of Fame. The team won 53 consecutive games during the 1951, 52 and 53 seasons.
He loved his family immensely and will be missed by them and so many others.
He is survived by his brother, Joe Boggan (Ralphene) of Willows; daughters Debra (John) Jackson of Graham, Wash., Peggie (John) Amaro of Willows, Diana (David) Corriea of Glenn , and Patsy (Gary) Dietz of Vashon Island, Wash.; grandchildren Jasmine Burtner, Jarvell Jackson, Tonya Farnam, Casey Moore, Lucas Corriea, Nicholas Corriea, Juliann Agbisit, Jason Boggan, Brandon Dietz, and Justin Dietz; 25 great-grandchildren; two great-great-grandchildren; and many cousins nephews and nieces.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Le Ann; his parents; brothers Russ and Brad Boggan; and half-brother, Harold Boggan.
A Celebration of Life is planned for 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 15, at the Willows Elks Lodge. In Lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Willows Elks Lodge, P.O. Box 646, Willows, CA 95988, or to your favorite charity.
The Glenn County Observer 