Erma Ruth Byrd

Erma was born in Berthold, North Dakota to Arthur and Lulu Belle Smith on August 3, 1915. She passed away September 25, 2012 at Fort Vancouver Convalescent Center, Vancouver, WA. She was preceded in death by her loving husband of 42 years, all her siblings, one son-in-law, two grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Erma is survived by her 3 children, Jim (Mary) Byrd of Maple Valley, WA, Dessie (Byron) Lathim of Ridgefield, WA, & Garnet Dunston of Kingman, AZ., 11 grandchildren, 19 great-grand-children, and 2 great great-grand-children, (which makes 2 sets of 5 generations). And 2 unborn great great-grand children. One sister-in-law Pat (Russ) Carr of Goodyear, AZ, and numerous nieces and nephews. During the depression her family moved West to Sandpoint, ID and Kettle Falls, WA. She finished her Senior year of high school in Kettle Falls, WA in 1934. In 1936 she married James "Fred" Byrd. They lived in the Byrd Family homestead, which was a log house built by her Father-in-law at Rice, WA. After that they lived in Elk, WA, Kettle Falls, WA, Chelan, WA, Colville, WA, Pleasant Valley, WA, Kahlotus, WA, Cunningham, WA, Othello, WA, Tacoma, WA & back to Kahlotus, WA. Erma moved from Kahlotus, WA to Ridgefield, WA after her husband past away. Erma worked in her husband's Service Stations in Chelan, Kettle Falls, and Kahlotus, WA. She was the Assistant Post-Mistress in Kahlotus and Cunningham, WA. She loves children and baby-sat many of the local children after she retired. She loved to hunt, fish, swim, & go rock hunting, and travel. On her 80th birthday she went for a hot air balloon ride with some of her children and grand-children which she enjoyed immensely. She was an excellent seamstress, sewing all of her and her daughter's dresses, as well as doing some sewing to supplement the family income. She would look at clothes in the Sears Roebuck catalog and make us girls the same dress by drawing the patterns out of newspaper and making the dresses out of printed flour sacks. She was always very active in church, teaching Sunday School Classes, head of the Women's Groups, making quilts, clothes and other items for the missionaries. She loved to cook and bake for her family, as well as, others who didn't have as much as she did. Erma was always helping others in whatever capacity she could. Since she grew up in farming country and lived on 3 or 4 farms during her married life. At that time, all of the food she fed her family came from the farm animals and the wheat . She butchered and dressed the chickens and churned her own butter. The wheat was taken into town and ground into flour for bread, biscuits and cookies. She, also, raised a huge garden. Erma always had a garden until just about 3 years ago. Sometimes there were rattlesnakes in her vegetable garden, but they didn't stop her - she would just kill them with the hoe she carried when in the garden. She, also, killed a one year old rattlesnake with a rock. Just before Erma fell and had to come and live at Fort Vancouver Convalescent Center she was still busy with church activities, as well as, china painting once a week. We are VERY PROUD of our Mother and the example she has been to all of us and her grand-children and great-grandchildren. God has richly blessed us !!

Erma Ruth Byrd

August 3, 1915 - September 25, 2012