Gene Junor Mohan

Sept. 5, 1925 - May 17, 2017

Gene (Junor) Mohan died on May 17, 2017, at the age of 91, of complications of pancreatic cancer in Corvallis.

Gene joined the Golfing Junor Clan when she was born in Vancouver, Washington, on September 5, 1925. Her father, Scottish-born Andrew B. Junor, was a golf course designer whose family created and maintained the first golf courses in the Pacific Northwest. Her mother, Clara Fullam, was a native-born Oregonian from Redland who lost her U.S. citizenship when she married Andrew, a Scottish citizen at the time. Clara subsequently applied for and obtained her naturalized U.S. citizenship.

Gene grew up in Washington and Oregon with her three brothers, Hugh, Andrew and Robert, all of whom preceded her in death. When she was 10 years old, her father left the golf course business and bought a farm near Molalla, where Gene and her brothers had many wild adventures in rural Oregon.

With Gene on the piano, Andy keeping time on drums and Hugh picking the banjo, their home and the local Grange Hall were frequently filled with music and fun.

Farm chores were a big part of Gene's early life and she often reminisced about milking the cows at dawn.

Gene was chosen May Queen at Molalla High School and was offered a full four-year tuition scholarship at Marylhurst College. After graduation from high school in 1943, however, she worked for a year at Crown Zellerbach as a chemist to save some money before attending Oregon College of Education in Monmouth.

In September 1945, she married her high school sweetheart, Charles Monroe, who had just returned from serving with the US Army in Europe during WWII. She and Charles were the proud parents of four children, who were fortunate to travel extensively and to experience living in France and Japan.

Gene and Charles divorced in 1972.

In 1978, Gene married Joseph Mohan, who had recently retired as the manager of the Crooked River National Grassland Reserve. Joseph died in 1982.

Gene worked in the Registrar's Office at OSU for many years.

A woman of boundless energy and unlimited interests, Gene had many dear friends. She was an avid bridge player, continuing to play bridge up to five times per week well into her nineties.

She was a 4-H leader for many years. She loved gardening and her flower gardens brightened the neighborhoods in which she lived.

Weekends would find Gene at garage and estate sales, adding to her extensive collections of cranberry glass and Department 56 Christmas houses.

She was an early adopter of solar panels on her house.

Gene was bright, thoughtful, kind and extremely generous. She was loved by her neighbors, cherished by her friends, and simply adored by her children and grandchildren. Even in her early nineties Gene could be seen driving her friends to play bridge or helping them shop for their groceries.

She was not a complainer and accepted life on its own terms, enjoying every minute.

Her survivors include son Jan Monroe and wife Peggy of Prairie Village, Kansas; daughters Janie Layman of Shoreline, Washington, Gay Hall and husband Cliff of Corvallis, and Sue Frisbie and husband Tom of Bend; eight grandchildren; and ten great-grandchildren.

A remembrance of her life will be held at a date to be announced at the Corvallis Unitarian Church.

In Lieu of flowers, contributions in Gene's honor can be made to Benton Hospice or Greenbelt Land Trust.