Martha Esther Burton's Obituary
Martha Esther Burton passed away on June 27, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was 94.
Martha was born in Freewater, Oregon on Oct. 6, 1928, to Karl D. Ganz and Vera Loretta (Gaskill) Ganz. She was the oldest of six children. Martha grew up in Freewater and Milwaukie, Oregon.
After high school, she attended Eastern Oregon College of Education at LaGrand for one year and then Pacific Bible College for one year where she met her husband Edmond. They married on July 30, 1950. She moved to St. Helens in 1954 with her husband and their 3 children to help with a small church which became Sunset Park Community Church.
Martha worked many years at The Bank of St. Helens, later Western Bank. In 1973 she began working at the Columbia County courthouse in the Oregon State Judicial Department. She retired from there in 1994.
Martha has been a member of Sunset Park Community Church since moving to St. Helens, taking an active part in its ministries including Sunday school, the music department, the nursery, and as church treasurer. She loved traveling, reading, music, and scrapbooking.
Martha is survived by her children Shirlene (Stephen) Perini of Broken Arrow,OK, Lorna (Dan) Standeford of Anchorage, AK, Kevin (Kathi) Burton of St. Helens, and Merrie Loyd of St. Helens; grandchildren Karissa Griffith, Micah Perini, David Perini, Geoffrey Crezee, Michael Ryan Crezee, Madison Laughlin, Karissa Pena, Molli McLean-Burton, Courtney Armstrong, and Dallas Naish; great-grandchildren Elyssa Griffith, Chloe Griffith, Annalise Griffith, Brielle Griffith, Levi Perini, Jackson Perini, Sebastian Perini, August Perini, Levi Crezee, Lydia Crezee, Isla Crezee, Halcy Crezee, Arora Pena, Maximo Pena, Luna Pena, Vincente Pena, Lilo Laughlin Walls, and Krew Knutson; siblings Marjorie Patterson of East Wenatchee, WA, Harold Ganz of Touchet, WA, and Sylvia Beach of Spokane, WA.
She was preceded in death by her husband Edmond T. Burton, son Theodore L. Burton, and grandchildren Ashley Burton, Brandon Crezee, and Matthew Burton.
Memorial contributions in Martha’s name may be made to Sunset Park Community Church, Snoopeeland, National Right To Life at nrtl.org, or Clarehouse Hospice at clarehouse.org.
Funeral services will be held on July 7, at 3 p.m. at Sunset Park Community Church in St. Helens.
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