Maurice A. Roberts, 87

Maurice A. Roberts was born Sept. 4, 1936, near Booker, Texas, to Howard and Virginia (Stanton) Roberts, and passed away May 2, 2024, in Hayden Lake, Idaho.

He was raised on the family farm of four generations in Fowler, Kan., and met his future wife, Peggy (Dorrell) Roberts, who was raised on a nearby farm, during their high school years. While attending Friends University, Wichita, Kan., he lettered in football for four years. He was junior class president and served as student body president during his senior year. After graduating in 1958, with a bachelor of science degree, he was active in various business endeavors for 25 years.

He married Peggy Dorrell on June 16, 1957, at Fowler, and they shared 63 delightful married years together. One of their highlights was helping to give leadership for Lay Witness Missions and Friends Marriage Encounters for several years, traveling across the country in this ministry and making lifetime friends.

With his young family, a favorite recreation was boating and teaching others to water ski. With Peggy, they served as youth sponsors for many years and a significant social activity was to be together on the lake.

Maurice was a dedicated lay leader in the Evangelical Friends Church on both the local level and denominational level, serving as general superintendent for Mid-America Yearly Meeting of Friends, in Wichita for 12 years. During this tenure, he was ordained as a pastor.

He later moved to Hayden, Idaho, where he served on the church staff as administrative pastor. Missionary endeavors were always of high priority for him and he made many administrative mission trips, primarily to Burundi and Rwanda, Africa. He also made many trips to India, where he served with Evangelical Friends Mission as a "coach" for national leadership.

Maurice and Peggy served together for one year in the Sudan during its civil war, where he assisted with relief support for Sudan Interior Mission during the years of civil unrest and fighting. One of his ministry assignments was to go into the Men's Maximum-Security Prison to lead a weekly Bible study for the volunteering inmates. An occasional interruption occurred when a hanging was to take place in the open interior yard.

He had a love for sports, first as a competitor and later as a fan. He earned athletic letters as a pole vaulter and half-mile racer during high school, and he earned football letters during seven years of high school and college competition. With his wife, they traveled extensively whenever possible, enjoying God's creation and making memories. He was in more than 40 countries when combining missions and touring. His final travel was to Israel with a church group, where he was able to experience many of the places where his personal Savior had walked.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Peggy, and by his parents and also his sister, Beverly. He is survived by a son, Kevin (and Meg) of Whitefish, Mont.; daughter Kristen Green (and Brian) of Hamilton, Mont.; and daughter Kim Figge of Sagle, Idaho; granddaughters Shayla Belland and Staci Miller, and grandson Justin Roberts; along with step-granddaughters Kirkland and Kyra Banik; and five great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 9, 2024, at Anthem Church (215 W. Miles Ave. Hayden, ID 83835). Please visit Maurice’s online memorial and sign his guest book at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.