Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First

Gordon Gale French

Gordon Gale French, 89, of Dix, died at Sidney Regional Medical Center Extended Care on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2014. Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 14, at the Cantrell Funeral Home in Kimball with Pastor Carla Gunn officiating. Private family interment will be held at a later date. Friends may call at the funeral home on Thursday to sign the register book and leave condolences for the family. Friends may also visit http://www.cantrellfh.com to view the obituary and leave messages of sympathy for the family. Memorials have been established to the Dix and Potter fire departments and also the donor's choice. The services for Gordon have been entrusted to the Cantrell Funeral Home.

Gordon Gale French was born in Potter on Jan. 24, 1925, the son of John and Emma (Benson) French. He was raised in Dix and attended the Dix schools and graduated from the Dix High School in 1944. He farmed north of Dix his entire life and in addition to farming he sold crop insurance and seed wheat along with other endeavors. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1950 and was stationed in Germany. He was honorably discharged in 1952. Gordon was married to Marilynn Ann Peterson on June 3, 1956, in Kimball. They lived on a farm north of Dix until building their own home, a place he still owned and farmed until February when he moved to the extended care.

Gordon enjoyed spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren. He served on many boards, including the Dix School Board for 10-plus years, ESU #14 Board for 28 years and the Kimball County FSA Board for over 20 years. He was also a 60-plus year member of the American Legion Post #292

Survivors include: his children Roger (Cari) French of St. Louis, Mo., and their children David and Ben French, Christy (Pete) Yetter of Winnemucca, Nev., and their children Jennifer Yetter, Samantha (Thomas) Draper and Kailynn Yetter, and John French and fiancé Jaymi Wirth of Ogallala, and her children Jake Wirth and Sara Wirth; and sister, Elaine Scheele of Loveland, Colo.

He was preceded in death by his parents, wife, daughter Billie Jo French and brother James French.