Homer Carter

A remembrance and celebration of life for Homer Carter will be held July 14 at 1:30 p.m. in the Agriplex Annex at the Okanogan County Fairgrounds. A potluck fellowship will follow. Homer was 91 when he passed away Jan. 27, 2012.

Homer came to Okanogan County at the age of one, with his parents, George Harry and Minnie Ida (Crysp) Carter, and brothers and sisters. The family settled in the area east of Tonasket.

Homer grew up in a time and place where poverty was the norm, and worked from an early age. He spent summers in sheep camp as a youngster and skidded logs with a team of horses as a young man. Homer graduated from Tonasket High School in 1938 and remained in the Tonasket area until drafted into the Army January 9, 1942. He served nearly four years in the Pacific Theater as a radio and telegraph operator, spending time in New Zealand, Australia and the Philippines.

After discharge, Homer returned home to Tonasket. He married classmate Catherine Martin in 1946, and they enjoyed more than sixty years together before her passing in 2006. Homer began working for the State Department of Highways on Oct. 14, 1946, and worked there nearly thirty years until retiring. He then took over directorship of the local TV District for some ten years before retiring for good. He was then able to pursue his lifelong passion of horses, horsemanship, and all things western. He was active in the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Posse and the Omak Stampede Association. In 1993, Homer was honored as the National Committeeman of the Year for his volunteerism in rodeo. He also spent countless summer hours riding cattle for area ranchers, with his saddle horses Bourbon, Cache, and Pete, mule Anvil, and faithful dogs Deke and Snoopy. He generously shared his knowledge of horses with anyone interested, and loved to relate stories of his many adventures.

Homer was an avid reader and particularly enjoyed western stories, cowboy poetry, military non-fiction, and anything about animals. In his later years Homer began to write of his lifetime experiences, in both prose and verse. He also became an eloquent speaker, and delivered warm eulogies for his dear friends who passed before him.

Homer is survived by two sons and daughters-in-law: Stan and Linda, and Jay and Laurie, all of Okanogan; and daughter, Chris Eliassen and partner Hammy Hamilton of Twisp; four grandchildren: Nathan and Marissa Carter of Okanogan, Dawn Eliassen of Spokane, and Jason (Jennifer) Eliassen of Denver; and two great-granddaughters, Carter Catherine and Lake June Eliassen; as well as numerous nieces and nephews and an army of friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; three brothers; five sisters; and his wife Catherine.

For anyone wishing to do so, donations in Homer’s memory can be made to your local animal shelter.