Memories of Owen Calvert Shumway

In memory of

Owen Calvert Shumway

Shawnee, OK, USA

February 8, 1945 - July 11, 2020

Feb 8, 1945 - Jul 11, 2020

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Charlotte Skousen

Owen would always say hi to me when I was little, and if I was in a bad mood, would always try to make me laugh. And if I wouldn’t laugh he’d tease me or threaten to tickle me if I didn’t at least smile. Which of course, would always make me smile. :) I’ll remember him fondly. Prayers and love to his wife and family.

With love,

Charlotte (Stewart) Skousen

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Grant Shapiro

I am so glad I had the opportunity to meet and talk with him a number of occasions. His goodness veins through his children. Hugs to you Jana and family.

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Jana Shumway

Comments:

Jana Shumway

Thanks Doc!!! Hope your family is well!!! Thanks Doc!!! Hope your family is well!!! Thanks Doc!!! Hope your family is well!!!

Bernice Wright

Janet and family, I am so sorry to hear of Brother Shumway's death. He was a very good man as described. That is the first thing I thought of when I heard the news. He was always there and ready to help others. I hope you and your family are doing alright. I'm sure the OB is right that he is greatly enjoying seeing not only family and friends but the many who are reaping the blessings from his temple work for them. I send my love to you .

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Tia Peters

Thank you so much Bernice. It has been a long road, and I'm glad he is at rest. Thank you so much Bernice. It has been a long road, and I'm glad he is at rest. Thank you so much Bernice. It has been a long road,... Read more

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Terry Hicks

Who is going to sit next me and call me Ladybug now? I’m really going to miss him! Thank goodness for the gospel that brings peace at times like these. Love to all of the family!

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Cylena Parkes do Rego Barros

My condolances to all the family. It does make me feel good thinking that maybe Uncle Owen is hanging out w/my dad & Uncle Gerry again.

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Tia Peters

Definitely! Definitely! Definitely!

Katy Vondy

Shared a heart

Christopher Battrick

What a great photo. Our hearts go out to you and your family during this tender time, Jana.

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Jana Shumway

Comments:

Jana Shumway

Thanks Christopher! Thanks Christopher! Thanks Christopher!

Christopher Battrick

Shared a heart

Jana Shumway

2017, Winslow, AZ, USA

Owen Shumway family photo taken at Gerry Shumway's Funeral

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Whitney Shumway

Jana Shumway

2016, Shawnee, Oklahoma, USA

50th wedding Anniversary Dinner

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Katy Vondy

Darla Dobbins

My dad was just 24 when my twin sister and I surprised him by coming into life together. We had a sister 18 months older, then another sister came 16 months later. On Doctors orders, I became my Dad’s baby and because of his caring for me, I feel our bond was stronger than the other kids. Well- at least until the boys came along.... my dad was maybe a bit of a chauvinist. I remember my dad during these early years with fondness. He was very handsome and had a beautiful laugh and smile to go with his jet black Superman hair. He was very outgoing and friendly- He would often pull off the road and talk to someone he knew for what seemed like hours! Dad liked to think of himself as very athletic- I remember his converse high tops when he played basketball. He was shorter than average- and tried to make up for it with hustle. If Dad had a temper at this age- I don’t remember it.

As more children joined the family (2 boys, 2 more girls and the boy caboose) in rapid succession-the pressure of such a large family increased and I saw my dad’s personality change. He became volatile and unpredictable- sometimes he was happy- singing and laughing- swinging us high in the air and sometimes taking crazy risks (I remember him taking me fishing with a one-armed man. We scaled a sheer cliff- dad lowering me down to narrow ledges to stand on- then he would scramble down below me and have his friend hold me by my arm while he grabbed my feet to lower me again.) Other times- he would sink into despair, becoming surly and scary- the slightest infraction would incite a terrible response.

Dad was a very hard worker and generous with his time in serving others. Each spring, he would cruise around town and look for garden spots that hadn’t been tilled yet. He would approach the owner and make a deal that if they would provide the seedlings and the irrigation, he and his kids would farm the lots, splitting the proceeds in the fall. This fed our family pretty well during the winter months. We had up to five big gardens each summer. Every day he was off work he would wake us all at the crack of dawn and drop us off in teams to hoe the weeds at the different gardens. They were hot long days- but sometimes we got to go get a soda at Maverick or Circle K. I always chose orange soda- because that was Dad’s favorite color. When cash was tight- he would come home from his job at the mill, grab his chain saw and head to the forest to cut a load of wood to sell.

We would make a trip from Snowflake to Woodruff at least once a week to check in on both sets of Grandparents that lived there. Dad and Mom both honored their parents faithfully, caring for them until they passed. I remember these trips because we would spend the drive singing hymns, primary songs and fun songs like Daddy’s Whiskers and Bill Grogan’s Goat. Dad had a beautiful voice. I recently asked my parents if we sang because they loved to sing, or because it kept us from quarreling. Dad said because he loves to sing, Mom said the other. We went to church in Woodruff more often than we did in Snowflake at times. I remember being shocked when someone said we shouldn’t be on the primary rolls at Woodruff. I loved my teachers there and felt like it was our “home” ward, they always treated us like we were family- and that’s because they loved my Dad!

After I grew up and started a family of my own, Dad was finally diagnosed with Bi-Polar Depression. He began treatment- but as those of you who are familiar with the treatment of Mental disease know, it’s hard to stay properly medicated. Dad hated the mistakes he made in raising his kids and suffered physically with ghost pains in his back that basically disabled him by the time he was 50. My kids remember only a handful of times that Grandpa was able to play with them. Usually when he visited he would lay on the floor in a quiet bedroom watching TV. Dad loved TV and movies - his favorites were Westerns like Bonanza and Little House in the Prairie, but he also appreciated Space dramas like Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica, that must be where I learned to love Star Wars. I don’t remember him watching many sports on TV though. He felt it was a waste of time- if you like baseball, you should play it not watch it!

For the last 20 years- we have been physically separated from Dad as he moved to Missouri and then Oklahoma, while we were off to Idaho and Minnesota. He’s not much of a phone talker- years of working at the paper mill limited his hearing so he didn’t like anything with a speaker. But when ever we did see each other- it was positive. He loved loved loved that Joe was a bishop and for the past five years that’s all he wanted to talk to me about.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel when the day finally came that Dad would move on. He has had a lot of close calls-and I have been emotional when I know he was struggling. But when the call came that he was gone, I can honestly say that I felt true joy. I am so happy for him that he doesn’t have the weight of his trials bearing down on him. He wasn’t perfect- we all know that, but he loved the Gospel and His Savior. His depression sometimes convinced him that he wasn’t worthy of Salvation, but I know the power - the infinite power- that Christ’s victory gives and I know that Heavenly Father is the best parent there is and that he will show all the mercy and love He can on my Dad’s behalf. Because of this- I can feel peace and joy instead of sorrow. I feel I lost my real dad years ago, So when I mourn, I mourn what could have been. I wish my younger siblings could have known the dad I knew. I wish my children could have had a Grandpa that was able to be engaged in their lives, I wish that Dad could have been spared the anguish of the guilt he has felt the last 30 years. But the joy I feel that my Dad is in a far happier state than he was yesterday or last year makes up for all that.

I love you Dad! I hope you get to be a guardian angel to my girls and grand babies! I love you for eternity!
-Love, your Darla Doolittle.

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Jana Shumway

Katy Vondy

Joe Dobbins

Comments:

Jana Shumway

so well written Darla!!!Thank You!!! so well written Darla!!!Thank You!!! so well written Darla!!!Thank You!!!

Deanne Smith

Darla, you don’t know me but when your dad and mom lived in Joseph City I was a good friend of your Mom’s.... Read more Darla, you don’t know me but when your dad and mom lived in Joseph City I was a good friend of your Mom’s. When it came about... Read more Darla, you don’t know me but when your dad and mom ... Read more

Whitney Shumway

2015, Mingus Mountain, Arizona, USA

Trent, Owen and Mel at the top of Mingus Mountian over looking the Verde Valley together. The fee toad rides we went on while in Arizona hold a very special place in my heart.

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