Edith LaVerne Rickel, 83

LaVerne Rickel passed away suddenly on April 4, 2013, at her home in Bayview. Born Dec. 8, 1929, to Arther (Boston) Murray and Myrtle Murray in Culbertson, Mont.

She began school at 4 corners in a little one-room schoolhouse close to her home. Her dad and uncle would take the kids to school by horse drawn wagon. The family moved to Medicine Lake, Mont., there she graduated Salutatorian of her class in 1947. After graduating high school, she came to Spokane where she graduated from Kinman Business College as a bookkeeper.

She met Iven Rickel Jr. on a blind date and they married on Sept. 3, 1948. They would enjoy 56 years of marriage. LaVerne was active with Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, B.A.B. Women’s Club, 4-H Club and paid up for Life Member of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 149.

LaVerne was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Iven Rickel Jr. She is survived by her daughter, Janet Powell and her husband Larry; her son, Val Rickel and his wife Cheryl. She is also survived by one grandchild, Kyla Arruda and her husband Sonny; one great-grandchild, Sofie Arruda of Hilo, Hawaii; and one brother, David (Imojean) Murray of Froid, Mont.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to: Girls State Fund sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 149, please contact Joey Haines at (208) 683-3376 for information or the Medicine Lake Honker Foundation, P.O. Box 265, Medicine Lake, MT 59247.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 13, 2013, at Yates Funeral Home, 744 N. Fourth St., Coeur d’Alene. Reception will follow at the Bayview Community Center in Bayview. Yates Funeral Home, Coeur d’Alene Chapel, is entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit LaVerne’s online memorial and sign her guest book at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.