Letha Gingerich, 92

Letha (Slatter) Gingerich, 92, of Bruneau, died Dec. 5, 2005, at a local care center in Mountain Home.

A memorial service was heldTuesday, Dec. 13, at the American Legion Hall in Bruneau. Services were under the direction of Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel, Mountain Home.

She was born Aug. 16, 1913, in Holstein, Neb., to Joseph E. And Edna (Kaufman) Slatter, the second oldest of six children.

Letha met her life companion, Jerry Gingerich, at Hesston College, in Hesston, Kan., and the couple married May 2, 1937. They moved to Filer, Idaho, in 1943, to take over her father's farm. In 1963, they moved to the Bruneau area to farm and ranch.

In 1960, Letha was involved in an automobile accident that left her partially paralyzed and she was told she would never walk again.

"But with her stubborn determination, she not only proved the physicians wrong by walking again, but lived a long, productive life not allowing her handicap to be a hindrance," her family said with pride.

Letha was always involved in her church, from teaching Bible School to working in ladies circles. "She loved being a hostess and opened her home and dinner table to many church friends and missionary families whom she and Jerry met while doing voluntary service for charitable organizations around the world. Guests were always encouraged to sign 'the guest book' before leaving," her family said.

Letha is survived by: four sons, Verlin and his wife, Ella, Rudy and his wife ,Colleen, all of Bruneau, Donell and his wife, Frances, of Nampa and Kermit and his wife, Clyden,e of Seoul, Korea; two daughters, Dolores and her husband, Ervin Brubaker, of Pocatello, and Mary Beth and her husband, Loren King, of Suffolk, Va.; three sisters, Florence Sheridan of Filer, Beulah Miller of Eagle, and Iola Lind of Canon City, Colo.; one brother, Carl Slatter of El Cajon, Calif., and 15 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 68 years, Jerry, who died earlier this year on September 3, 2005, and a brother, Clifford Slatter.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Bruneau Community Church, Bruneau, Id 83604.