Gretchen Irene Gaston

Gretchen Irene Gaston of St. Helens lost her battle with cancer on July 26, 2011. Born on April 20th, 1947 in Seattle, WA, she was the first child of James E. Schnittger and Mary Jane Broadfoot. Her sister Martha was born four years later. Over the years the family shuttled between the Pacific Northwest and the East Coast. After the death of her husband in 1956, her mother married Richard Graham Kirchner, the Equity Guest Artist at the Oregon Shakespearean Festival in Ashland. In 1962 Richard adopted the girls and raised them as his own Gretchen went to St. Helens Hall beginning in 1965 and returned to the East Coast where she completed her high school education in 1967. After attending Southern Seminary in Virginia for one year, she returned to the West Coast where she met and married Dan Lange on April 7th 1969. After several years in the Portland area where she worked at a retirement home, the family moved to St. Helens where she opened her first business, Rock of Ages Record Shop. It was during this time that she began a life-long love affair with the town. In 1979 she and several others created the local theater group, the Shoe String Community Players, and they performed children's plays at the fair. At her insistence the family moved from St. Helens to Bend, OR in part so she could return to school. There she attended Central Oregon Community College where she pursued a theater arts degree. She also worked as the editor of The Broadside, the school's newspaper. In 1986 Gretchen and Dan parted ways and she began a new chapter in her life living outside of Sunriver. Her career path changed as well as she became a Radio Ranger at local country station KICE. This started a career in local politics as the radio's reporter for school board meetings. Every Sunday morning she would have an on-air shift and always played the song "The Battle of New Orleans" by the Minutemen for her son as it was the only "country" song he liked. In 1994 she returned to St. Helens where she worked at the St. Helens Café, also known as Jay's by the locals. It was at the same time that she met Bob Gaston; they were married in 1996. From then on, she never looked back. Becoming involved in town politics, she decided to start a new venture with her long time friend, Bill Cade. In 1998 Bertucci's was born and it became a focal point for local town news as well as coffee. In 2006 they closed the shop to allow her time to focus on other interests. Throughout the years, her support of the local theater scene was legendary and remained close to her heart. In 2010 to continue helping and supporting the local community, she reopened Bertucci's to once again, ensure a local meeting place for the talented artists. Gretchen is survived by her husband, Robert, her daughter, Anneliese, her son Jeremy, and her sister Martha. A memorial service will be held August 13th, 2011 at 12:00 PM at McCormick Park.

Gretchen Irene Gaston

April 20, 1947 - July 26, 2011