Grace Lucille Pendergrass

Grace Pendergrass, 95, died quietly, with family nearby, on Thursday July 30th at Samaritan Evergreen Hospice House in Albany. She was born on Flag Day, June 14, 1920, to James William and Lucy Belle (Linkswiler) Robinson in Heavener, Oklahoma, the oldest of eight children. The family moved to Cloudcroft, New Mexico in 1936. She and her sisters, Edith and Alice, were quite the singing trio and were popular invites to the local barn dances. She married her handsome cowboy, William Paul Pendergrass, on June 13, 1943 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She worked on the Pendergrass Horse and Cattle Ranch and told stories of bringing stray calves in by horseback. She followed Paul to San Diego during his boot camp and became a "Rosie the Riveter", assembling airplanes for the war effort of WWII. Not allowed to quit the war effort, Grace relocated to Corvallis, Oregon to build Quonset huts at Camp Adair and to assist her sister, Edith, with her new babies. When Paul returned from the war, they settled into Corvallis for a time. She attended courses and taught classes on cooking and sewing at Oregon State University. They lived in Mapleton, along the Suislaw River between 1958 and 1986 and raised their five children. She camped near Corvallis with her young family at the Horning Farm bean and strawberry fields during the summers while Paul would be away logging - to teach her boys how to work. Those were wonderful days, eating fresh green beans and blackberry cobblers. When Paul was unable to work in the woods due to a logging accident in 1965, she went to work, "pulling on the green chain" in the wood products mills around Mapleton until retiring around age 62. Paul and Grace returned to Corvallis in 1986 and Grace moved to Philomath a few years after Paul's death in 1993. Most recently, Grace lived at Stoneybrook Assisted Living in Corvallis, where she made new friends and enjoyed her remaining days in good company. Grace will be remembered for her quiet strength and unconditional love for her family. She always had a quick smile and kind words for those around her. She loved to sew and made hundreds of quilts that she bestowed on family and friends. She loved to cook. If you stopped by her door, you'd better be hungry, as she would start setting a feast before you. All of the neighborhood kids were welcome at her table and many would stop by Grace's house for a second holiday meal. She loved gardening and flowers her whole life through and she passed this love on down through her family. The family would gather to cook, can and freeze the garden bounty for the coming winter. Many happy hours were spent in her garden and kitchen. Grace is survived by her children Aubrey and wife Karen of Florence, Stanley of Philomath, Paula of Reedsport, Kathy of Portland; eight grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; brothers John Robinson of Alamogordo, New Mexico, Joe Robinson of Shallowater, Texas; and sister Glenna Cloin of Chino Valley, Arizona. She was preceded in death by her husband Paul, infant son, John Paul, son, William, brother, Elmer; and sisters Alice Worley, Edith Marks, and Alena Joliff. A Memorial Service will be at 11am Saturday, August 15 at the Lancaster Oregon Church of Christ. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions be sent to Samaritan Evergreen Hospice House in Albany.