Wasco-Deschutes-Jefferson County OR Archives Obituaries.....Morelli, Sue Ann November 13, 2003 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/or/orfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Ila Wakley iwakley@msn.com March 22, 2006, 11:11 pm The Dalles Chronicle, November 18, 2003 Sue Ann Morelli, 83, a resident of The Dalles, died at a local care facility on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2003. Sue was born Sept. 2, 1920, in Birchdale, Minn., the seventh of ten children to Martin and Eva (Cervosky) Grazin. She grew up in Birchdale and graduated from high school in Indus, Minn. After high school, she moved to Iowa then to California before moving to Bend in 1943. In 1944, she started the Cadet Nursing Program at Portland’s Good Samaritan Hospital. She graduated in 1947 and scored the highest score in the pharmaceutical section of the Oregon State Nursing Board exams. Sue started her nursing career at Portland Shriner’s Hospital, and in the later 1960’s worked at Mt. View Hospital in Madras as Director of Nursing and later worked at Indian Health Services in Warm Springs. She met her future husband, Joe Morelli, while he was a patient of hers at Good Samaritan. They married June 28, 1948, in Reno, Nev., and settled on her husband’s ranch near Shaniko. She was proud to be a part of the Morelli family and started a tradition of Thanksgiving for the family at Shaniko every year. After a rodeo accident eventually disabled Joe, they sold the ranch and bought the Shaniko Hotel in 1954. They operated the hotel and restaurant, which was well known for her generous cooking, especially the chicken dinners, coffee-can homemade bread and cinnamon rolls. In 1960, they started Oregon’s first adult foster care home and restoration and preservation of Shaniko as a historical landmark which is being continued today. She was also mayor of Shaniko in the 1960’s. Her husband died in 1971 and she continued to run the hotel/foster care home until selling the hotel by auction in 1977. She moved to Madras, traveled extensively throughout the United States, and wintered in Arizona. In the late 1980’s she returned to Shaniko where she enjoyed writing on Shaniko history, cowboy poetry and doing paintings of historical scenery, Native Americans and for her family, nieces and nephews. In the early 1990’s, she moved to The Dalles and became very active in The Dalles Senior Center. She was a member of the Senior Serenaders and enjoyed singing at the local nursing homes, assisted living homes and other care facilities. She was a volunteer at Columbia Basin Nursing Home and enjoyed sharing her love of art and music with the residents. She also enjoyed sharing her knowledge of Shaniko history with talks at the Wasco County Museum and other local facilities. She loved spending time with her family, yard sales, cooking, gardening, art and learning the Spanish language. She was known for her enthusiasm towards life. She is survived by her daughters, Mary Wolverton and husband, Wayne, The Dalles; and Bonny Abendschein and husband, Kevin, Madras; grandchildren, Jacque Palmer-Bierman and husband, Brian; Julie Johnson; Kevin and wife, Lindsy Abendschein and Kody Abendschein, all of Madras; great grandchildren, Lainee, Maycee and Kylee; her siblings, Raymond Grazin, Sturgeon, Minn.; Martha Granrud, Hamilton, Mont.; and Bonnie Mountford, Redmond, Wash.; her brother-in-laws, Thomas Morelli and wife, Gerry, Maupin; Michael Morelli and wife, Claire, Portland, and both of their families and numerous nieces and nephews. Viewing visitation will be held at Spencer, Libby & Powell Funeral Home on Friday, Nov. 21, from 2 to 7 p.m. and 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 22, at Spencer, Libby & Powell Funeral Home. Private interment will be held at Mt. Jefferson Memorial Park in Madras. Remembrances may be made to Columbia Basin Care Facility, 1015 Webber St., The Dalles OR 97058. Additional Comments: Written permission to reprint given by The Dalles Chronicle, The Dalles, Oregon, Dan Spatz, Editor (e-mail dated 3/7/2006). File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/or/wasco/obits/m/morelli454gob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/orfiles/ File size: 4.5 Kb