David Jenks

DAVID WAYNE JENKS                 February 2, 1935 - May 19, 2019



David was born to Aasel & Mabel Jenks in Woods Cross, Utah. When he was still small, they moved to Heyburn, Idaho, where he went to elementary and high school.



He married Clara Korb in 1951. They had three children. During their marriage, he was drafted in the US Army and served part of his time at Ladd Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska. After nine years, they divorced and he moved to Spokane, Washington a short time later and lived near his eldest sister, Alice Koch and her family.



In 1964, looking for work, he found a job as a auto body technician in Stayton, Oregon. While living there he met and married Suzy Seitz. They had one son and David became the father of a stepdaughter from her previous marriage. They eventually lived in Scio, Oregon where they had horses and belonged to a saddle club. He also served as a volunteer firefighter for the Scio Fire Department. They were divorced after nine years.



In December, 1978, while attending a Parents Without Partners meeting in Salem, he met Lynn Kassell. They were married May 19, 1979, and lived in Silverton along with her son of a previous marriage. In 1984 they moved outside Silverton on 3-½ acres where they lived the remainder of his life.



David was a firefighter for the Silverton Fire Department for about 15 years and in that time he also became an EMT1. David, Lynn, who also became an EMT, Russ Morrison and Bob McGowan were on a permanent on call team for about three years responding on calls for service. They were allowed to park the ambulance in Russ’ barn and respond from there.



He was a member of the Silverton Lions Club for several years. He could be seen at Homer Davenport Days flipping pancakes at the grill.



He always enjoyed the outdoors hunting, fishing, camping, dirt bike riding in the desert or just working in his garden. He raised vegetables from seed in a small green house along with many types of annual flowers. A couple winters built birdhouses from reclaimed wood  using his own design and proudly gave several to family and friends. He was a very good cook and won several Dutch oven cook offs at their annual church campout. The last couple years he became a drone pilot and made several videos with his second drone, the first is now living in the woods somewhere up behind their house.



They became RVers and eventually belonged to the Silverton Elks RV Group and spent many hours in good company on outings. They had several camping trips planned for this summer and hoped to go to Arizona for the second time next winter.



Mostly, he enjoyed fellowship with family, friends and fellow church members. He delighted in spending time with his kids, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He  enjoyed attending concerts presented by the African Children’s Choir. He & Lynn were blessed to co-sponsor one child, Stella Nabatanzi, who they consider an unofficial “adopted” daughter. The children are from Uganda.