Eunice M. Shaner

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Eunice M. Shaner

Eunice Shaner passed away peacefully in her sleep November 3 ^r ^d at the wonderful age of 98 at her brother and sister-in-law ' s home , Larry and Barbara Spence in Boise, ID. Eunice had been living with her family for almost five years and they pro v ider her with amazing care and love .

Eunice Spence was born in Greybull, WY on May 30 , 1913 to Owen and Eva Welch Spence, with one older brother, Buster . Eva passed away in Billings , MT in 1918 . At that point Eunice and her brother lived w ith their grandmother for two years until her father remarried . Eunice always described her stepmother Libby, as an amazing and caring woman. She was " the most tender , loving woman she had ever known . " Libby provided Eunice with nine half brothers and sisters . The family moved many times between Idaho and Wyoming and she attended many country schools until her 9 ^th grade year when she attended high school in Powell, WY . She stopped her education in her sophomore year to stay at home and help take care of the children and the housework .

In December, when she was eighteen , her baby brother Larry was born. In those days, babies were born at home . She had said that when the doctor came , he took one look at her and said she was going to help him, and he took Eunice by the arm and led her in the room where she had to witness the whole thing . The doctor handed Larry to her when he was born .

In 1933 , when Eunice was 20 , she met her life long friend Helen Simson Schutlz who always lived close by and was a dear friend for most of Eunice ' s life until Helen passed away .

A year later , Eunice met George Shaner who had just moved nearby . Eunice would watch from her windows for George when he was out at the corral tending to horses . She would go out into the yard with some excuse hoping he would notice her , which he finally did. George proposed to Eunice while he was fixing a tire on an old car and she was watching him . He turned to her and said, " I would like to marry you .” She replied , " That ' s nice, but I will have to ask my dad ." They were married on March 2, 1934 , two months after their first date . She wore her best dress , which she had only four of . Someone had given them a dollar so after a small ceremony , they went to the movies . They were just happy to have each other . They lived in a small sheep wagon for several months in honeymoon bliss outside of Warm Springs , WY. During that summer on special days they would walk the seven miles to town for a fifty cent movie . Children for this loving couple came late . George Owen Shaner was born February 15 , 1941 , almost seven years after they were married . Nancy Pearl was born September 26 , 1944. They raised their children in Thermopolis where they lived most of their lives.

After the children were grown , Eunice worked at the hospital cafeteria, supplying staff and visitors with a friendly smile. Eunice was always a good natured and positive woman, despite the many tragedies in her life . By the age of 37 , she had lost a mother , stepmother, brother and two sisters . Later , she also had breast cancer . But you wouldn't know it by being with her . She always had a smile and good joke for those around her .

She focused on her family and her siblings , and on , her five grandchildren and eventually her thirteen grandchildren . She spent her time camping around Wyoming such as Deep Lake , Sitting Bull and Sunlight Basin . At some point they even established their own campsite up in the Bighorn . They helped nurture camping and fishing in their children and grandchildren. Eunice made everything fun and enjoyable because that is how she lived her life. She was joy. She also had a funny sense of humor and a way of phrasing things , like " finer than a frog ' s hair split three ways ," or " she wasn't ready to be put up on blocks in the backyard yet . " The best one is her view on hugs, " that was what arms are for," and she was always ready to apply it .

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