LEORA NEAL BECHTOL

Leora Neal Bechtol died recently.

She grew up on the Lion Springs ranch outside Payson and graduated from nursing school in Tucson in 1938, at the age of 20. She was married to Bob Bechtol and they lived in Phoenix until 1946.

Her loved ones wrote, "The couple belonged to a motorcycle gang, and rode motorcycles all over the Southwest, trading work for extra gas stamps during gas rationing, and Leora enjoyed the freedom and camaraderie of motorcycle trips."

In 1951, they went to Alaska for the first time. Mrs. Bechtol worked at Providence Hospital in Anchorage and convinced her husband to stake out a homestead.

In May 1955, they homesteaded 160 acres 60 miles north of Anchorage. While her husband worked around the state of Alaska, Mrs. Bechtol lived in a canvas wall tent, cleared land and built a cabin.

Within a few years, the couple had a cabin and garden. In their spare time, they obtained private pilots' licenses, bought a plane and made a landing strip. This was their life for 20 years.

In 1975, they moved to a home on a golf course in Sequim, Wash. They enjoyed fishing and gardening in the temperate climate of Sequim, bowling and playing cards with friends. Mrs. Bechtol loved to travel, and visited many places in her life.

Then, in May 1996, Bob Bechtol passed away.

Mrs. Bechtol's health declined dramatically over the next six years. In September 2003 she moved to a Peoria, Ariz., assisted-living home, and battled cancer and emphysema to the end.