Merl Zenos Tolley

Merl Zenos Tolley, Moses Lake pioneer, passed away at age 94 on Saturday, Nov. 4, 2006, in Moses Lake. He died of complications associated with asthma and congestive heart failure. He was born Dec. 28, 1911, in an adobe farm home in Nephi, Juab County, Utah. He was one of 13 children of Hyrum Warren Tolley and Betsy Rachel Whittaker.

Merl had a happy childhood working and playing with his family, friends and riding horses. He learned to work at an early age and was always an energetic and hard worker. He enjoyed helping his father who was an expert horseman, farmer, rancher, and builder. He had one very favorite horse, a mustang named Pet.

Merl and Fern Elizabeth Bendixen met in Vale, Ore. while their families were there to farm on the first U.S. Government Reclamation Project. Merl and Fern were married Dec. 7, 1934, in Payette, Idaho, and settled in Oregon for several years before moving to Idaho and then Utah. Merl and Fern moved to the great state of Washington during World War II where Merl began working construction on large ships in the Kirkland shipyards. While working there, he visited his brother, Spencer, in Zillah, Wash., and remembered that farming was his first love.

Merl then purchased a small farm in Granger, Wash., and raised asparagus, grapes, and some livestock. Merl also worked in the construction trade at this time and eventually worked on the building of the Grand Coulee Dam. He was a carpenter by trade, but mastered many skills. As Fern said, "he could fix anything if he had enough time to figure it out."

Merl and Fern decided to move to the Columbia Basin and made Moses Lake their home in 1949. Merl built the family home in the evenings and on weekends and he lived in that same home until he passed away. Merl worked on many structures in the Moses Lake area including Larson Air Force Base, U&I Sugar factory, most of the schools in the area, the fairgrounds, the swimming pool, the LDS Rose Street Chapel, the library, the hospital, and the city jail. He also worked for the Bureau of Reclamation as a foreman at the Winchester Pumping Plant. Merl laid concrete pipe for irrigation inlets and outlets and he built sidewalks and curbs in Odessa. He was an expert cement finisher. He could do electrical work, plumbing, roofing, finishing, and anything in the carpentry trade, but his favorite part of carpentry was framing. He also built many homes in the area. Merl purchased a farm unit on the Royal Slope from his brother-in-law and farmed while working other jobs for many years. Industry, integrity, honesty and humor were Merl's hallmarks.

Merl loved music and he liked to sing. But dancing was his passion! He was never one to "sit it out"—he danced! He was active and ambitious by nature and loved to have a good time visiting and telling stories and jokes. He liked sports and games of every kind, he especially loved the board game Parcheesi. He was an expert Parcheesi player and he could outthink and outwit the toughest competitor. Merl loved his children and all children. He was a great example of hard work and industry. No matter the circumstances or the type of job he had to take, he would do whatever was necessary to provide well for his family. He left a six-generation posterity including 12 children, 42 grandchildren, and over 120 great grandchildren and counting.

Merl, our dear family patriarch, we love you and we will miss you until we meet again.

Merl is survived by seven daughters and three sons: Nellie (Lamond) Smith, Ferron, Utah; Mae Monroe, Sunnyside; Grace (Pat) Houghton, Coos Bay, Ore.; Joe (Judy) Chappell, Pittsburg, Okla.; Jerry Ann (Jay) Carlson, Kent; Bonnie Wilks, Lapriel (Francis) McDowell, Steve (Sharon) Tolley, Sharon Taylor, Rick (Marie) Tolley all of Moses Lake. He is also survived by one sister, Ruth Zabriskie, Nephi, Utah. Merl was preceded in death by his wife, Fern, his parents and 11 brothers and sisters; his infant son, Dean; his daughter and son-in-law, June and Jay Stewart; and his sons-in-law, Charles Monroe, Rex Wilks, and Woodrow Taylor.

Merl was a member of the Moses Lake Third Ward, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Services will be held Friday, Nov. 10 at 10 a.m. at the LDS Rose Street Chapel in Moses Lake. The family will greet friends at the visitation on Thursday evening from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. at Kayser's Chapel of Memories and at the church on Friday from 9 a.m. until 9:30 a.m.

The family wishes to thank all caregivers, especially Dr. Ryan Tolley.