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1936 - 2022

BORN

1936

DIED

2022

FUNERAL HOME

Coos Bay Chapel Cremation & Funeral Service

685 Anderson Ave.

Coos Bay, Oregon

Tracy Vallier Obituary

Tracy Vallier Tracy L. Vallier was born in Oakland, Iowa on September 19, 1936, and passed away peacefully while surrounded by his loved ones on the morning of August 28, 2022. Tracy is survived by his four children, Garry Vallier, Lane Vallier, Monte Vallier, and Susan Morrell, his seven grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, his sister Shirley (Vallier) Remmenga, plus many step-children, nephews and nieces in the Vallier, Mulshine, and Canty families. His first wife, Gertrude (Mulshine) Vallier (1938-1989) preceded him in death, as did his second wife, Sheila (Canty) Vallier, his father, Thomas Vallier, mother, Pearl (Hardy) Vallier, sister Doris (Vallier) Angeroth, brothers Ivan Vallier, and Kent Vallier. Tracy graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in 1954 and immediately joined the U.S. Navy (1954-1958) where he attained the rate of Air Controlman First Class (E-6). After discharge, he attended Iowa State University (B.S. Geology, 1962) and Oregon State University (Ph.D. Geology, 1967). He taught at Indiana State University (1966-1972), Lewis-Clark State College (1997), Whitman College (1998), University of Oregon (2005), held research geological oceanography positions at the Deep Sea Drilling Project, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California (1972-1975), and the U.S. Geological Survey, Meno Park, California (1975-1997). He received several awards for his scholarship and geologic work in Hells Canyon. Tracy was elected to the ALHS Hall of Fame in 2009. He wrote four books of fiction during his later years (see website: hellscanyongeology.com), all published by Seven Devils Books.

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Published by The Daily Nonpareil on Sep. 11, 2022.

Memories and Condolences
for Tracy Vallier

Sponsored by Coos Bay Chapel Cremation & Funeral Service.

8 Entries

Soudabeh Khalili

November 15, 2023

My condolences to all Tracy's family and friends.
I was surprised why I had not heard from Tracy last year till I checked his name on the web. It made us very sad when we found out about Tracy passing away. I always thought he is one of the people who will reach to his 100s years old. His passion for accomplishing so many projects was admirable.
We were neighbours in Tahoe for 10 years, even though we were not permanent residents but over the years we developed a deep friendship together. Whenever we had a chance we went hiking with Tracy or had coffee together. We also kept our communication through emails.
Both Sheila and Tracey were special persons in our life. We learned a lot from Tracy. Tracy's passion for Earth, environment and nature was admirable. He was so concerned about global warming from the early times we met. We always were telling him if there were more people like him in the world, we would have been in a much better situation Today.
His memory will always stay with us.

Carolyn Daniels

September 9, 2023

Tracy was my neighbor in Moscow. Great, intelligent man I knew him a short time from 2019 on.

Peter S.Mulshine

May 3, 2023

As to his loss?I think the appropriate term is OUR LOSS I wished I had talked to him more& stayed w Scripps, Id Say we should build Glaciers to store Cold & stop desertdication in the West!!!,soory to saY that idea came from Ted Taylor,& JohnMcPhee,,I wonder if he ever talked to them?Ive read most of McPhee books & was at an event once w him.

Peter sean Mulshine

May 3, 2023

I had just moved to Encinitas,Calif in 1975 & contacted Trudy & Tracy Vallier to say hello .They picked me up at The SanDiego zoo.[I had been Visiting my Brother Pauls, Chimp relatives.]& after dinner at their house He suggested I put in an application for a job on a research vessel as a cook,,so that led to cook on the R/V Seamark Cordova alaska& I got see IcyBay before it defrosted!! Thanks Tracy!!

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Cody

March 6, 2023

Tracy was just the nicest guy. I had the pleasure of meeting him on a geological field trip in Riggins, Idaho in 2016 where he volunteered his time giving us background on the area. I met with him again in the summer of 2020 to visit him in the field and to collect a sample near the Snake River. He helped me find the outcrop I was looking for and we had a good time touring the geology and chatting. I relayed that I had gone up a sketchy road to find a somewhere to camp the previous day and he laughed, because I had apparently driven up one of Idaho's notably dangerous roads, the Kleinschmidt grade. He will certainly be missed but I am grateful to have met him.

Susan Bakel Cohn

January 7, 2023

Tracy was a friend and grandfather of my beloved student, Marlon Morrell. Tracy was one of those superior human beings who exhibited all the best character traits. He was kind, humble, hard working, generous, humorous, loving and independent. My memories of him will always be a blessing.

Florence Wong, USGS

October 22, 2022

To Tracy's Family,

Tracy always went out of his way to keep an eye on early-career folks at the USGS and followed their work as they grew in the science. I was fortunate to be among those. When I was first aboard, he introduced to me to some basalts that he had collected in the Pribilof Islands, Alaska, and we did a petrography paper together. Later he suggested I help coordinate the publishing of several volumes of the work that the Coastal and Marine Geology team did in the South Pacific in the 1980s.

His enthusiasm for Hells Canyon fostered many pilgrimages to the Snake River by USGS folks. In 2013 my husband and I took our turn and managed to schedule a visit during one of his summer field excursions. He directed us to an enjoyable boat tour while he and his field buddy Charles trekked 10 miles in drenching rain to map some mima mounds.

In expressing his regrets for missing Dave Scholl's bon voyage party in May this year, Tracy shared "I'm apartment living in Moscow, Idaho, home of the Idaho Vandals [football]. Nice folks, great scenery, and new friends. My health hasn't grounded me and I'll turn 86 in September." I'm sorry he didn't make this milestone, but I am glad to have been in his generous sphere of influence.

Carolyn Daniels

October 1, 2022

So sorry to hear of his loss. I knew him briefly as a neighbor in Moscow Idaho. May he rest in peace.

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