Lester "Les" WIGEN

1936 - 2025

Lester Keith Wigen was a wheat farmer on his parent's farm in LaCrosse for 37 years. He passed away on March 3, 2025, in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, where he has lived for the last 15 years. A Memorial Service will be Friday, March 21, at 11:00 AM, at the Selbu Lutheran Church near LaCrosse. Pastor John Cross will officiate, and urn burial will be in the Selbu Cemetery.

Les was born in Colfax, Washington on September 19, 1936, to John and Esther Wigen. He attended LaCrosse Grade School and high school from Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane, where he graduated in 1955. He went to PLC in Tacoma and was elected Sophomore Class President. In 1958, Les transferred to Washington State College and graduated in June of 1962. He was drafted into the U.S. Army under President Dwight D. Eisenhower on November 9, 1958, and was honorably discharged on August 9, 1960.

He married Rosemary Burns of Pomeroy on August 27, 1960. Together they raised their four children on the farm near LaCrosse. They spent summer days on the Snake River boating and water skiing; Les also enjoyed snow skiing. Les was an avid fisherman, and he really loved doing that. Later, he liked to follow his children and grandchildren in all of their school and sports activities. Les was a charter member of the J C's in LaCrosse, a School Board member, Conservation Farmer in Whitman County in 1984, and he was elected a Whitman County Commissioner in 1994. He served in that role for 12 years. Some of his favorite accomplishments as County Commissioner was getting the Courthouse Clock running again after 30 years, renaming River Road to Brayton Road, and helping put together a historical map showing the Century 100-year farms on a map in the Courthouse. Les was always very instrumental in the Save our Dams movement. In 1952, while playing in the Lewis � Clark High School Band, Les had the opportunity to shake hands with General Dwight D. Eisenhower in Spokane when he was running for President. This was always a special moment for Les.

Les was a member of the Washington Wheat Growers and was State Membership Chairman in the 1980s. He was also President of Selbu Lutheran Church in LaCrosse and held other offices such as, trustee and cemetery sexton over the years. Another highlight of his life included a trip to the World Series in Milwaukie in 1958.

Rosie passed away in 2002, and after being alone for three years, Les met Kathy Davies of Odessa, Washington, and they married on November 19, 2005. They moved to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, in 2009. Les and Kathy loved to travel and some of their trips included a very special one to Selbu, Norway, in 2007, a trip to Whistler Mountain and Campbell River in BC, where they brought home 75 pounds of filet salmon. They also enjoyed New Orleans, a cruise to Mexico, and a land trip to Cancun. Les was a reading helper for first graders in Dalton Gardens and Fernan Elementary School for six years. He loved his family and especially enjoyed watching his grandchildren in their sports and music activities.

He is survived by his wife, Kathy, at their home in Coeur d'Alene; children, Dean (Donna) Wigen, LaCrosse, Leilani (Glen) Carpenter, Moscow, Idaho, Lesley (Paul) Price, Rainier, Washington, and Wendy (John) Hanes of Airway Heights, Washington; six grandchildren, Dirk, Jacob, Jason, Lane, Jacqueline, and Valerie; seven great-grandchildren, Rila Rose, Lauren Grace, Kenna Lynn, Granger Norman, Hadley Ray, Blakely Rose, and Scarlet Mae; and siblings, Phil Wigen of Santa Rosa, California, and Janet Wigen of Apache Junction, Arizona. In addition to his wife, Rosie, Les was preceded in death by a brother, Richard; a sister, Beverly Hyde; and his parents. The family suggests memorial gifts in his memory be to a Veterans Thrift Store, Newby-ginnings of North Idaho, 570 Clearwater Loop A, Post Falls, ID 83854, or to the LaCrosse Scholarship Foundation, 111 Hill Ave., LaCrosse, WA 99143. Online guest book is at www.corbeillfuneralhomes.com.

Corbeill Funeral Home, in Colfax, is caring for the family.