Florence M Crow

Florence M. Crow
March 19, 1931 - Dec. 27, 2023

It is with great sadness that we share that our mother, Florence M. Crow, 91 of Toledo, passed away in her sleep of natural causes, at home on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2023.

Florence was born on March 19, 1931, at home during a harsh winter storm, in Bucyrus, North Dakota. Born at just over 3 pounds and with a diagnosis similar to Spina Bifida, Florence defied the odds and survived with no ill effects.

Florence was the youngest of 7 children of Herman (Rudolph) and Marie (Johnson) Quamme, both immigrants from Norway.

After her father’s death when she was 12, her mother moved the family into the nearby town of Hettinger, North Dakota. Florence graduated from high school with honors in 1949 and met her future husband, Dick Crow of Lemmon, South Dakota when they attended an outdoor music concert after Dick’s date was a no show. Dick had recently finished serving his time in the US Army and had been a Prisoner of War in the Korean War.

Florence was attending Northern State Teachers University in Aberdeen, South Dakota when they met. She graduated and she became a teacher.

Dick and Florence were married in Lemmon, South Dakota on Christmas Eve 1953. Florence taught in Poplar, Montana, and their first child, Cindy, was born while living there.

Florence convinced Dick to enroll at NSTU and she continued classes and obtained her Master’s Degrees in History and English while they lived on campus. In that time, they had their second daughter, Julie. After they both graduated, they moved to an Army Depot in Igloo, South Dakota where they were both offered teaching jobs.

When the Army Depot closed soon after, they bought a 4-door International pickup and a camper, called “The Crow’s Nest” and made the decision to venture west.

They each had teaching offers in many counties in Oregon, but Lincoln County offered both of them jobs so that is where they settled, in Newport, Oregon in 1964 with their two daughters.

Florence’s first teaching job was in Siletz, Oregon and she brought her girls with her where they started 1st and 4th grade. Two years later, Florence was offered a job in Newport at Sam Case School and several years after that she taught at Mary Harrison School in Toledo until she retired in 1990, after 37 years of teaching in Lincoln County.

Florence loved teaching and often had every sibling in the family as she was so well liked by students and their parents. She also had second generation students and remembered every one of her students, often running into them in later years and remembering not only their names but almost everything about them and their families.

Dick and Florence moved to Toledo, Oregon in 1995 and enjoyed retirement in their new home for several years before Dick passed away suddenly in 2008, while serving as Oregon’s POW Commander.

Florence missed Dick every day of the rest of her life, but she continued to enjoy her daughters and their families, her church friends and other community members.

Florence loved reading her bible, watching and listening to politics and cuddling with her fur babies, which were often strays who found their way to her door. She loved to read and re-arrange her home often. She loved talking to friends and family on the phone and in person.

Florence is survived by her daughter Cindy Hoefer of Creswell, Oregon and daughter Julie Bearden (Bill) of Toledo, Oregon. Cindy’s children are Brian from Eugene, Oregon, and Justin from Medical Lake, Washington. Her grandchildren are Rhiannon and Lucian.

Julie’s children are Amanda (Jason) from Philomath, Oregon, Jon and Kayla, both from Toledo, Oregon, and Jerry from Eugene, Oregon.

Amanda’s children are Camden, Carter and Corben Blakely. Jon’s daughter is Ruger Marie Rhoades and Kayla’s children are Jack and Jace Silvia.

Florence is preceded in death by her husband, Dick and granddaughter Kayla (Silvia).

A memorial service for Florence will occur this coming April or May, and will be announced in the newspaper and on social media. We hope that everyone who knew and loved Florence can attend, and we look forward to seeing you all.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Florence M Crow, please visit our floral store.