Murrel K Bowen

Murrel K Bowen, 92, of Everett, Washington died of natural causes on Saturday, August 23, 2008 at his home. Two memorial services will be held, one in Washington, where he resided for 50 years, and another in North Dakota. The WA service will be at 2:00 PM on Saturday, September 6, 2008 at the Fraternal Order of Eagles, 19223 Hwy 99, Lynnwood, WA. In Beach, ND a memorial service will be held at 2:00 PM on Saturday, September 13, 2008 at the United Community Church, 335 Central Ave North. Burial will be next to his parents in the Beach City Cemetery. Murrel was born June 11, 1916 on the family homestead in Golden Valley, North Dakota. He was the fifth of seven children born to Murrel and Maud (Plummer) Bowen. Following the death of his father, Murrel's family moved to a ranch northeast of Ollie, Montana when he was three-years-old. Murrel attended grade and high school in Ollie graduating from high school in 1935. For most of their school years, Murrel and his siblings went by horseback to school. It was sometimes a "game" to see who would get his favorite horse. Murrel's was Dynamite. After high school, Murrel worked on the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) camps with his brother Paul. Camp Needmore, near Ekalaka, Montana, was one of the camps where they worked. It would be the site of future family reunions. On October 31, 1940 Murrel married Leona Hoelting in Seattle, Washington. To this union six children were born: Arlen, Sharma, Jane, Dean, Glenn, and Marie. Murrel served his country in the US Navy, December of 1943, at Bremerton, WA and later at Oceanside, CA. He completed his three years of service with an Honorable Discharge. After WWII he worked in the Seattle navy shipyards. His family moved to Harlan, Iowa where Murrel owned and operated a combine for commercial harvesting. With news of economic growth in the Minnesota area, the family moved to Plainview. Murrel worked as a finishing carpenter at Assisi Heights of Rochester, the Orin-Thompson Industries of Minneapolis, and as a self-employed contractor until 1957. Murrel and Leona separated in 1957 and later divorced. Murrel moved back to Washington area where he continued working as a finishing carpenter. His work also included cabinet making and boat work. He was a lead man and foreman on numerous dam sites in Washington – Hoover Dam, Rock Island Dam, Wells Dam and Grand Coulee Dam. He also put up power lines across the state of Washington. He took great pride in his work and was recognized for his abilities by being selected as a finishing carpenter on the House of Tomorrow at the World's Fair in Seattle. Since 1968 his permanent residence was in Everett, Washington. After his retirement, he remained active and busy with some kind of project or adventure. Murrel was an outdoorsman. He enjoyed fishing, hunting, boating, panning for gold, and mining gem stones. He made many trips to Montana with Don Frazier, mining gem stones, such as, sapphires, rubies and garnets (and staying out of reach of the bears!). Also, his dedication to his relatives and friends brought him to Montana each summer. Special highlights of these trips were the Ollie-Carlyle reunions, Camp Needmore family reunions, the July 4th Marmarth rodeo, and visits with friends and relatives. Murrel's survivors include three sons, Arlen, Dean, and Glenn; three daughters Sharma, Jane, and Marie; numerous nieces and nephews; and his life-time friends, Don and Julie Frazier, and their families, and Mike Stortroen and Betsy Cook. Murrel was preceded in death by his parents and all of his siblings; four sisters: Lois Beach, Mary Waterland, Evelyn Scott, and Ada Rustad and his two brothers: Bryce (Bud) and Paul Bowen. A history of the Bowen family is displayed in The Golden Valley County Museum located on 185 1st Ave SE in Beach, North Dakota. If anyone is interested in visiting the museum, it will be open from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM and 4:30-5:30 PM on the day of Murrel's memorial service. Murrel K Bowen Tribute Video from Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home on Vimeo.

Murrel K Bowen

June 11, 1916 - September 13, 2008

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Murrel K Bowen

June 11, 1916 - September 13, 2008

What We Do

Flowers & Gifts

Plan Ahead

About Us

Resources

Obituaries

Grief & Healing

Contact Information

365 Days of Grief Support