Agnes Dorothy Oblander was born and raised in Verboort, Oregon, the

sixth of 15 children of Albert & Mary Evers. The big family lived in a

farmhouse just down the road from Visitation Church in Verboort. The

farm and the church were the touchpoints of the family’s life. The

days—even school days—could start astonishingly early, as chores had

to be done. Mother recalled getting up in the cold dark hours to pick

hops from plants soaked with dew, which made the job even colder. In

the evening, the entire family gathered in one room and said the

Rosary together. Weekends might find the women and girls from the

extended family come together for a quilting bee.

Throughout her life, even after marrying and moving to town, Agnes

would remain a farm girl, growing vegetables, fruits, and flowers as

long as she had her own home.

World War II brought a lot of changes as men around the country were

called to serve in places far from home. And a certain young former

farm boy from Kansas signed up for the Coast Guard because he heard

the food was better than in the other services. Homer Oblander was

stationed at the Oregon coast, where he became friends with Norbert

Krieger. When Norbert married his sweetheart Betty in Verboort, Dad

came along to serve as best man. Homer, all of 19 years old, hit it

off right away with the red-headed 16-year-old Agnes.

Years later, after the war, Homer proposed to then 21 year old Agnes

and on September 11, 1947, they married. Looking at the wedding

pictures, you see a shy but confident and beautiful young redhead

standing proudly beside her young (former) sailor who maybe looked a

little bit like a cross between Humphrey Bogart and Sean Connery.

(Some of his genetic traits somehow apparently missed his sons!) Homer

took a job with First National Bank of Oregon and he and Mom lived in

a number of cities as Dad was transferred from place to place. They

finally settled into a home in Beaverton, where Mom became a member of

St. Cecilia Church in 1959.

Homer and Agnes had been married 60 years when he died in 2007. During

their 60 years together, they accomplished more and traveled to more

places than they could have possibly imagined growing up in their

rural areas during the Great Depression.

Agnes always deferred to Homer, giving him credit for all they

accomplished. However, as the years went by, it seems all the more

evident that she matched him in both wisdom and strength. In so many

ways, she was the moral rock upon which the family was built.

Agnes stayed in her longtime home until 2018, then moved into the

Hearthstone at Murrayhill retirement community. There, she became fast

friends with two other women known as "the other Agnes and Elizabeth."

Countless people have told the family in recent months how sweet and

likable Agnes was. During a hospital stay last fall, Mom was due to be

released to rehab, but the nurses didn't want to let her go because

they enjoyed her so much.

Homer and Agnes built a family with four children: Don, Merle, Mary,

and Patrick. These were followed by six grandchildren: Eric, Ryan,

Carver, Kendal, Shin, and Aaron. And then Jackson, Mom’s first

great-grandchild, brought a new light late in Agnes's life.

Agnes is survived by her siblings Neon Evers, Joseph Evers, Frederick

Evers, and Norma Sue Peters; children Don Oblander (Eileen Gereghty),

Mary Murrary (Joseph), and Patrick Oblander (Yuko); grandchildren Eric

Oblander, Ryan Murray (Danielle), Carver Oblander, Kendal Murray, Shin

Oblander, and Aaron Murray; and great-grandchild Jackson Murray.

She is predeceased by parents Albert and Mary Evers; siblings Anna,

Ignatius, Adelbert, Florence, Peter, Edmund, Alvin, Eugene, Harry, and

Vern; husband Homer Oblander; and son Merle Oblander.

We know that she looked forward to the day she would be reunited with

Homer. And that understanding makes it easier for us as we bid her

adieu.

A visitation for Agnes will be held Sunday, June 11, 2023 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Pegg, Paxson & Springer Funeral Chapel, 4675 SW Watson Avenue, Beaverton, OR 97005. A rosary will occur Monday, June 12, 2023 at 10:30 AM at St Cecilia's Catholic Church, 5105 SW Franklin Ave., Beaverton, OR 97005. A funeral mass will occur Monday, June 12, 2023 at 11:00 AM at St. Cecilia's Catholic Church, 5105 SW Franklin Ave, Beaverton, OR 97005. A committal service will occur Monday, June 12, 2023 at 2:00 PM at Visitation Cemetery, NW Visitation Rd., Forest Grove, OR 97116.