Edith May (Beenders) Garten

Edith Garten, 97, passed away peacefully on Oct. 30. Edith was born on May 3, 1919, to Frank and May (Gehrke) Beenders at the family farm, six miles southwest of Nezperce, Idaho. She was the youngest of three children (Dorothy and Roy). Edith attended the Evergreen School for grades 1-7, which was across the road from her family’s farm. She graduated from Nezperce High School on May 29, 1936, and went on to the University of Idaho. Edith graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in home economics in June of 1940. She went on to teach at Elk River High School, where she also served as the sophomore class advisor.

Edith married Wilbur (Sam) Garten on Nov. 2, 1940, in Coeur d’Alene. Edith and Sam had two sons, Roy and Jerry, and lived in Headquarters, Idaho, until 1962. Edith and Sam lived in Orofino until 1999 and then moved into the Wedgewood Terrace assisted living facility in Lewiston. Sam preceded her in death in 2003. Edith moved to the Boundary Extended Care Facility in Bonners Ferry in 2014.

Edith is survived by Roy Garten of Enterprise, Ore.; Jerry Garten of Bonners Ferry, Idaho; five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.