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Clara Ellen (Wolf) Fisher, 94

| December 22, 2010 1:43 PM

Clara Ellen (Wolf) Fisher passed away Dec. 19, 2010, at Garden Plaza in Post Falls.

Ellen was born Jan. 17, 1916, in Bloomfield, Iowa, to Hollis B. and Leah M. Wolf. Ellen's parents moved to Grant City, Mo., where she and her younger sisters (Mary and Kitty) grew up. She was happiest spending her time outdoors, particularly riding her horse across the countryside.

She graduated from Northwest Missouri State Teachers College (now NW Missouri University) in 1937 with a B.A. in secondary education. She held several teaching positions in Missouri and settled in Panora, Iowa, as the local school principal. There she met Rex Fisher. Ellen and Rex were married July 26, 1943. They had two daughters, Nancy Ellen and Mary Sue. The family eventually settled in Indianola, Iowa. Ellen joined the Des Moines (Iowa) School District in August 1957, and received her M.A. in science and education from Drake University in 1960.

Rex passed away in 1963 at the young age of 45. Ellen did not remarry and raised her daughters as a single parent on a teacher's salary. She retired from Kurtz Junior High (Des Moines) as Assistant Vice-Principal and Girls Advisor in 1979. She eventually moved from Iowa to Mesa, Ariz., to be near her daughters.

After her retirement, she was able to fulfill her dream of adventure and travel. She visited many countries around the world and almost all of the United States. Her favorite trips were to Churchill, Canada, to see the polar bears and to the very tip of Argentina and the Antarctic to walk among the penguins. A vacation with her daughter and son-in-law brought her to North Idaho. Upon their retirement in early 2008, they moved to the Blanchard area. She joined them soon after.

She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Mary Sue and William (Bill) Stinson of Blanchard; granddaughter and her husband, Leslie and TJ Gilchrist and great-granddaughters Maia and Isabella, all of Peoria, Ariz.; sisters Mary Combs, of Overland Park, Kan., and Kitty Munkres, of Galena, Kan.; many nieces, nephews and their families; and many dear friends and acquaintances.

She is predeceased by her husband, Rex in 1963, and her oldest daughter, Nancy Ellen in 1995.

Her wishes were for no services to be held.

Ellen and her family would like to thank the caregivers and staff of Garden Plaza in Post Falls for their love and kindness. We would also like to extend a special thank you to her doctor, Denise Sweeney, and to the special people at Hospice of North Idaho and NOSDA.