Leon LeRoy Rich

Leon LeRoy Rich (85) fell asleep in Christ on January 30, 2008 after a long and courageous battle with Parkinsons and 2 strokes in March 2006. Although, wheelchair bound for almost 2 years, he accepted his physical limitations with grace and enjoyed the attention of those who loved and cared for him. Leon was born on January 25, 1923 to Lewis Allen and Bessie (Wiswell) Rich in Glendale, CA. He married his high school sweetheart, Vivienne Margaret Mountain on September 6, 1943. By October, 1943, he had been inducted into the US Army, where he served as a medic at O’Reilly General Hospital in Springfield, MO. He was discharged from military service on April 30, 1946. Under the GI bill, Leon took a lab & x-ray technician course, but soon realized he didn’t enjoy being confined to the indoors. His real talents lay in the building trade, especially in the area of remodeling. He worked in the area of carpentry and maintenance for most of his career. In 1982, Leon and Vivienne purchased property overlooking the Pend Oreille River. Leon began building a home on this land in 1983, doing most of the labor himself. It was his last creative endeavor, before developing Parkinsons, which had also afflicted his father. With the house was mostly completed in 1984, Vivienne retired from her school nurse position in California, and joined him in their new home. Although early on Parkinsons limited him to some extent, he still enjoyed working on small projects for family and friends. He was also lead out in the SDA Community Service Center for many years. He is survived by Vivienne, his loving wife of 64 years, and 4 children: Darrell LeRoy & wife, Suzanne of Three Rivers, CA, Lewis Arthur & wife, Karol of Sandpoint, ID, Dennis Lee & wife Shirlee of Bozeman, MT, Donna Lynn Schmidt and husband Wally of Sandpoint, ID, plus 9 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. Leon has a brother Harold and wife, Mary Lou who live in College Place, WA and a sister, Ruth & husband Richard Norman of Lindsay, CA. He was preceded in death by his older sister, Alladene Scheideman of Porterville, CA. He will be sorely missed by his family and many friends. As a life-long member of the Seventh-day Adventist church, Leon would have appreciated your donation to the Sandpoint Junior Academy or to the charity of your choice in lieu of flowers.