Florence E. LePage

Florence Ethelyn (Ham) LePage, 93, of Pasco, WA passed away on Sat., October 7, 2017 in Kennewick, WA.

Ethelyn, as she preferred to be called, was born December 8th, 1923 in Baldwin City, KS to Chester R. Ham and Beulah L. (Burton) Ham.  Ethelyn grew up in Pullman, WA where her father was a professor at Washington State College (now W.S.U.).

In 1943, while attending college at Pullman, Ethelyn was recruited to work at the new Hanford Engineer Works.  Housing availability was so sparse that she was lodged in Prosser, WA and was bussed to Pasco to work in the basement of the Pasco Theater to help process incoming railcar loads of laborers and materials.  Her first jobs included clerking in the traffic and accounting departments, then in the commercial facilities department.

Later while working as a lab technician in the 200-E area chemistry department, she met her future husband, Walter, who was an instrument technician at the 100-D reactor.  Ethelyn and Walter were married on October 5th, 1945, soon after Walter had accepted a teaching position at Columbia High School (now R.H.S.).

In 1948, Walter and Ethelyn purchased undeveloped farmland just north of Pasco, WA in Block One of the Columbia Basin Project.  In 1950 they moved from Richland to their farm.  Soon thereafter, they formed the W.A. LePage Seed Company, located on the farm, which they operated for 46 years, processing and marketing various seed types grown throughout the lower Columbia Basin and Walla Walla valleys.

Ethelyn was constantly busy raising children, helping with the farm work, and doing bookkeeping for both the farm and seed business.  There was never a dull moment and she seldom complained.  She loved children and maintained a large box of toys which always contained some of her own creations. 

She was an active member of the Pasco Heights Community Club and of its women’s auxiliary.  There she helped teach Sunday school and worked on most events and fundraisers. Ethelyn was a member of the former Pasco First United Methodist Church.  She was a long time member of Columbia Valley Grange and of the Franklin County Historical Society. 

Ethelyn was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Walter, her two brothers, her daughter, Joyce and grandson, Drake.  She leaves behind daughter, Phyllis Dawson of Pasco, WA and sons Bruce LePage of Pasco, WA, Steven (Jane) LePage of West Richland,WA and David LePage (Lynne, d.) of  Worley, ID.

Her grandchildren include Spring (Dawson) Nanda and Luke Dawson, Bailey and Clive LePage, Logan and Gavin LePage, and Jocelyn (LePage) Schiermeister. Ethelyn has three great-grandchildren. Her surviving sibling is Mildred Schilson (Robert) of Greenville, S.C.

A special thank you goes out from the LePage family to Dr. Jim Campbell; he and his father have treated our family for 60 years.  Special thanks also go out to Debra and Paige, owners of Fleur de’ Lis Adult Family Home, for their care and protection of our mother.

Einan’s Funeral Home is in charge of funeral arrangements. A memorial service and celebration of Ethelyn’s life will be held at Events at Sunset, 915 Bypass Highway, Richland, WA at 11:00a.m. on Sun, October 15, 2017. 

In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to either the Columbia Basin College scholarship endowment which exists in the name of Walter and Florence LePage, or to the Franklin County Historical Museum.