Bliss Bignall, 87

Bliss O. Bignall Jr. of Coeur d’Alene, ID died October 6, 2013 at Northern Idaho Advanced Care Hospital from injuries received from a serious fall. He was born July 23, 1926 in Pocatello, Idaho to Bliss O. and Reva (Yeates) Bignall. During W.W. II Bliss served with the 87th Division in the Battle of the Bulge, receiving an honorable discharge in 1945. He was educated at the University of Utah, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and George Washington University School of Law. While attending law school at night in Washington, D.C., Bliss worked first for the Navy Department’s Bureau of Personnel, Officer Procurement Section; then as an attorney in the Solicitor General’s Office of the Commerce Dept., (at that time the largest operation in the government save for the Defense Dept.) where, among many of his duties (during the Eisenhower Administration at the commencement of the Canadian/U.S. partnership in the building of the St. Lawrence Seaway) he had to research and report on 50 previous years of Congressional hearings on the project, contained in 25 volumes. His last job before moving to Coeur d’Alene was again with the Navy Dept., its Congressional Liaison Office, where he wrote letters for the signatures of various Senators and Congressmen when ship contracts were awarded, and even at times for the President of the United States. Desiring to practice law in a small town in the West, he and Annette moved to Coeur d’Alene in the first week of January, 1955 to set up his general law practice in the fall of 1955 after passing the Idaho State Bar examinations, then retiring in the fall of 2005 to write his memoirs. During his life in Coeur d’Alene, Bliss was very active in civic affairs, spending over 50 years as a member of Toastmasters International, as well as a good many years as a member of the Idaho Panhandle Kiwanis Club, where he spearheaded two ambitious projects sponsored by the Panhandle Kiwanis Club: A Sea Scout Ship (Troop), which project won the Idaho Panhandle Kiwanis Club the coveted Ruby Award from Kiwanis International – one of only fifteen awarded world-wide. The second was as Chairman of the fund-raising committee for the building of the Fort Sherman Play Park constructed in 1997, which idea he’d seen in Sandy, Oregon, his brother, Olin’s, home town. Bliss is survived by his wife, Annette; a son, Bliss O. Bignall, III; grandchildren, Beaux (Bliss IV), Aerro, Patrick, and Matthew; three great grandchildren; sisters, Rosalie Ferguson and Monica Kohler; and a brother, Frederick M. Bignall. He was preceded in death by his parents and an older brother, Olin Y. Bignall. A memorial service will be held 1:00 p.m. Saturday, October 12, 2013 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 2801 N. 4th St., Coeur d’Alene with Yates Funeral Home, Coeur d’Alene in care of the arrangements. You may visit his online memorial and sign the guestbook atwww.yatesfuneralhomes.com