DELTA LORENE JENSEN

Palmer resident Delta Lorene Jensen, 77, died July 29, 2005, of heart and kidney failure, at her Butte home. She was lovingly cared for in her final weeks by family from Alaska and Oregon, wonderful personal-care attendants and hospice.

A funeral will take place at 4 p.m., Friday, Aug. 5, in Palmer, with visitation from 2-4 p.m. at Valley Funeral Home's Hemmer Road location.

The Rev. Richard Allen of St. John Lutheran Church will officiate, aided by Hospice Chaplain Joanna Lee. Burial will immediately follow at Palmer Pioneer Cemetery. A reception at the Palmer Moose Lodge will be held after burial. A memorial service will be held in the Medford, Ore., area at a later date.

Mrs. Jensen was born July 21, 1928, in Burns, Ore., to Joseph Marion Buchanan and Edith Elizabeth Gibson. She moved to Medford, Ore., as a young child. With her husband, Burton Jensen, she raised four children in Eagle Point, Ore. In 1984, the couple moved to Alaska, where they built a home on the Plumley Road property of their oldest child and her husband, Aedene and Jerry Arthur.

Mrs. Jensen began working after the eighth grade to help support her mother and siblings. She worked in a variety of retail stores, including Penney's and Safeway, and packed pears at Reter Fruit Co., where she often held the record for most boxes packed in a day.

From the 1960s through the early 1980s, she co-owned and managed the Jensen Shale Pit Co. in the Rogue River Valley, working with her husband and two sons. She also sold Avon products for more than 15 years in Oregon and Alaska until heart surgery in 1996, and was still affectionately known as "the Avon Lady" to hundreds of her customers, who always became her friends.

Mrs. Jensen has a large collection of Avon awards for being top salesperson in her district, including gold, silver, bronze and porcelain statuettes.

She was an active member of the PTA when her children attended school. One year, she made 25 cakes for the school cake walk, helping her child's class win first prize for number of donated cakes.

Mrs. Jensen was a community advocate in both Oregon and Alaska, speaking out on zoning concerns. She was a member of the Loyal Order of Eagles #4592 of Medford and the Oregon Dump Truck Association. She had been a member of the Medford Moose Lodge #178 since 1971 - she was the lodge's official musician, playing the piano. At official functions, she played, "When the Saints Go Marching In" to usher in the officers.

Her family wrote, "Delta raised gardens and canned hundreds of jars of food to help feed her family during the lean years, but grew flowers to please the eye and feed the soul. Her flowers often won prizes at the Alaska State Fair. Delta loved people, and was always pleasing to the eye with her colorful way of dressing, especially when she wore her Avon jewelry samples displayed on her blouses and sweaters. She loved music, learning to play the piano and sing for her father, who played for old-timey barn dances.

"Mom was the product of the hard times of the Depression and World War II. She was a strong, hard-working woman who stopped going to formal school after the eighth grade to help her family, despite being a very intelligent person. Mom earned her GED in 1965, the same year her oldest child finished college. Mom loved to sing and play the piano, especially ragtime tunes and hymns for family music fests on Saturday nights before television was invented. Delta loved visiting people and was well-liked by anyone who met her.

"She was a loyal wife of more than 58 years, working by her husband's side, often as hard as any two men. Her 13 grandchildren adored her. She loved seeing her 16 great-grandchildren and one of her last wishes was to see her three great-great-grandchildren (1-year-old boy and twin girls, 3 months old) before she died - she got her wish. She also achieved her final goal of living to be 77, even though she was very sick, through the will power and determination that served her well throughout her life."

One granddaughter wrote, "My grandma had the sweetest smile that would brighten up the room when you walked in. I loved the way she called me 'Sweet Babe' when she'd see me or when I called her on the phone. My Grandma had the kindest heart. She would do anything for anyone. The way she played the piano and sang those old songs always made me feel so happy inside. I will miss my Grandma tremendously; she meant so much to me."

Mrs. Jensen was preceded in death by her father and mother; older brother, Willard E. Buchanan, and Alaskan grandchildren, Aaron and Beth Arthur.

She is survived by her husband of 58 years, Burton. Her Alaska survivors include daughter, Aedene and husband, Jerry; granddaughter, Tana Arthur-Tejeda, and husband, David; grandchildren, Zaya Arthur-Gunton and Aaron Arthur Blum and their fathers, Tok Gunton and Charles Blum; great-granddaughter, Brenna, and husband, Michael Robinson, with children, Muhammad, and twins, Aiesha and Khadijah. Oregon and Washington survivors include daughter, Charlet Gunter, and companion, Esteban Gutierrez; son, Jimmy Jensen, and wife, Scarlett; son, Joey; sister, Deana Hulkill, and husband, Bud; brother, Donald Buchanan, and wife, Barbara; brother-in-law, Russell Jensen, and wife, Katy; sister-in-law, Dorothy Hill of Montana; sister-in-law, Margaret Buchanan; ex-daughter-in-law, Judi Jensen, and aunt, Bonnie Gibson. Oregon Gunter grandchildren include Steven and wife, Joni, Dan, Carrie Simpson and husband, Darrell, and Andy Gunter. Oregon Jensen grandchildren include Kellie and husband, David McCullum, Kristi and Kevin Anderson, Katrina and Shad Gillispie, Heidi, Jason, and Leann Kuhl and Keith and Susie Kuhl. There are also 15 great-grandchildren in Oregon; Jacob Gunter, Tanner and Erika Simpson, Davey and Emily McCullum, Jada and Kylie Anderson, Cavin, Carson, and Crayton Gillispie, Aiden, Collette, Joseph, Peter and Joshua Kuhl.

Mrs. Jensen's family said she loved flowers and would enjoy having bouquets from home gardens at her service. They would appreciate memorial donations in her name to Hospice of Mat-Su, 3051 E. Palmer Wasilla Hwy., Wasilla, AK 99654. Arrangements are with Valley Funeral Home & Crematory in Wasilla.