Richard Edwin Willaman

Richard Edwin Willaman, age 79, of Grants Pass, passed into eternal life, Monday, January 21, 2013 at Three Rivers Medical Center.

A celebration of life will be at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, February 2, 2013 at the Floral Building at the Josephine County Fairgrounds. Hull & Hull Funeral Directors are in charge of arrangements.

Contributions may be made to North Valley High School Stadium Committee, 6741 Monument Drive, Grants Pass, Oregon 97526 or a charity of choice.

Richard was born May 27, 1933 in Los Angeles, California to David & Almeda Willaman. In 1950 he graduated high school and soon after enlisted in the United States Navy where he learned his trade as a dental technician. In 1954 he married Norma Fay Bond. They moved to Grants Pass, Oregon in 1954, where he worked as the dental technician for several dentists in Grants Pass and around the state of Oregon. He taught dental technician classes at Oregon Health Science University in Portland, Oregon. Richard owned and operated Willaman Dental Lab in Grants Pass from 1955 until his retirement in 2010. He was a family man who enjoyed watching his children ride horses and motorcycles. He was a fixture at North Valley high School sporting events, watching his sons run cross country and play football. After Norma’s death in 1984, he met his partner in life JoAnn Rogers. They enjoyed crabbing on the Oregon Coast and traveling to Mexico and Alaska. In his later years he enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren and following their interests.

Survivors include two sons, Mark Willaman and Todd Wilalman; and a daughter, Holly Hillis all of Grants Pass, Oregon; JoAnn’s children, Craig Stillwell, Kelly Davis, and Tracey Williams all of Medford, Oregon; 11 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, David & Almeda Willaman; a brother, David Willaman and his wife, Norma Willaman.