Rhododendron resident Clarence Peter Heisler died Saturday October 3, 2009 at his home. He was 78.
A Memorial Gathering of family and friends will be held at a later date.
Clarence was born on May 13, 1931 to Marcelles and Ida (Tapphorn) Heisler in Saskatchewan, Canada. His family came to the United States when he was eight years old, settling in Portland. They remained in Portland and Clarence received his education there graduating from Central Catholic High School in 1949. After completing school he worked in the shipyards in Astoria for a time before he was drafted by the U.S. Army. Clarence served in Korea from 1956 to 1959. He worked in logistics making sure that food was distributed to all Army units as needed.
Upon returning to the States Clarence continued working in a food related industry starting a job at Centennial Mills in Portland. As he became more experienced he was able to move into supervision. He re-located to Centennial Mills Spokane in 1970. After 20 years he then retired and returned south to Vancouver.
He met and married Inez Martinez on May 12, 2007 and they settled Rhododendron.
Clarence loved woodworking and gardening. He also liked riding his motorcycle with his friends. In his later years he especially enjoyed taking road trips by car and traveling to see family and friends.
He is survived by his wife, Inez; daughters, Dolores Pritchett of Vancouver, WA; Marcie Heisler of Tacoma, WA; Denise Brogden of Rhododendron; sons, Stephen Manion of Portland; John Manion of Silverton; Tony Manion of Troutdale; and Chris Manion of Portland; sisters, Bernie Maloney and Florence Hering of Portland, 7 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his brother Walter in 1987.