Lou Hartman Mason's Obituary
Leroy Lou Hartman Mason passed away on Saturday, May 7, 2011 from complications of pneumonia. He was 92.
On January 28, 1919, Lou came into the world in St. Francis, Kansas. His parents were Lewis and Mabel Mason and he joined a four-year-old sister, June. They moved to St. Helens in 1924 where Lou attended St. Helens schools, graduating in 1937.
In high school he was involved in many organizations and clubs, and especially athletics. Lou served as student body president, and upon graduation was awarded the H.W.H. Adams Cup as the outstanding all-around athlete and received a football scholarship to the University of Oregon.
Lou attended the University of Oregon, Oregon Normal Western Oregon University, and Oregon State University prior to World War II, receiving his Teaching Certificate from Oregon Normal. After the War he received his Master's Degree in Education from the University of Oregon. He was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity. Lou pulled off a rare feat of earning athletic letters at all three Universities in football and/or track.
During the War, Lou was a Second Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps, serving as a Pre-Flight Cadet Physical Education Instructor at Maxwell Field in Montgomery, Alabama. There he married his college sweetheart, Siegra Pat Young from Seaside, Oregon in 1943.
Following the War, Lou attended watchmaking school in Los Angeles, so he could return to St. Helens and take over Mason Jewelry, his father's jewelry store in downtown St. Helens. He was a jeweler and watchmaker until 1961. Lou then began his twenty-year teaching career at Warren School, teaching 7th and 8th grade and taught 6th grade for nineteen years at McBride and Condon Elementary Schools, retiring in 1980.
Lou enjoyed camping, boating, fishing and traveling. He was an avid fisherman and enjoyed success every salmon and steelhead season, having caught at least one spring Chinook every year since World War II. He was a competitive bowler and the director of the St. Helens Duplicate Bridge Club.
In retirement, Lou and Pat were able to spend many quality years continuing to do what they enjoyed. They made countless trips to the Oregon Coast, clamming, crabbing, and fishing. They also enjoyed visits to Canada, Alaska, Mexico, China, New Zealand, and Australia. Lou continued his participation in athletics by swimming and walking daily and spectator sports by watching all local and regional sporting events. In 2004, Lou was inducted into the St. Helens High School Sports Hall of Fame. He was also a founding, charter member of the St. Helens B.P.O.E Elks #1999.
Lou was a quiet and unassuming gentleman and a welcome presence in any gathering. Those who knew him knew he lived by the maxim, "If you cannot say something good about an individual, don't say anything." As a school teacher, "Mr. Mason" was much loved by his students and peers. He had a great sense of humor and he often played good-natured pranks on his students.
Lou is survived by his four children, Patricia Aston of North Logan, Utah; Nancy Sue Dunham of Pendleton; Lewis of Bellevue, Washington; and Leonard of Scappoose; twelve grandchildren; and nineteen great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his wife of 63 years and by his sister, June Ketel.
There will be a private, family memorial. Remembrances or contributions can be made to the St. Helens High School Booster Club. An on-line remembrance can be made at www.columbiafh.com .
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