Beth C. Bliss

Bliss, Beth C. (Burge)
Age 61

Grants Pass, OR. Passed away July 13, 2013, at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend, OR. She was 6 miles into the Bandit Springs 50-mile Endurance Ride northeast of Prineville, OR, when her horse tripped in a hole that had previously been filled. Beth was born November 20, 1951, in Omaha, NE, to Dean and Elaine Burge. She graduated from Benson High in 1970, and Iowa Western Community College in 1994, as an RN. Beth enjoyed working in her garden, traveling, volunteering, and most of all horse activities. She was a former Board Member of the Iowa Wabash Trace Nature Trail, Secretary of the Oregon Grayback Brushriders, and Vice-President of the Rogue Riders. She was a member of many horse groups, including the Pacific Northwest Endurance Riders, and American Endurance Riders Conference. In 2004, Beth fulfilled a lifelong dream of completing the horseback endurance ride called the Tevis Cup, 100 miles within 24 hours, through the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Lake Tahoe. She had planned to and was training to compete in the 2014 Tevis. Preceded in death by father, Dean Burge; and step-father, Don Hagemoser. Survived by husband of 40 years, Barry; daughters, Sarah, Brighton, CO, and Autumn, Grants Pass, OR; granddaughter, Madelynn; mother, Elaine Hagemoser, Seward, NE; brother, Gary (Julie) Burge, Lawson, MO; sister, Candy McIntosh, Lincoln, NE; and brother, Mark (Candy) Burge, Lincoln.