Vera Charlotte McIntyre's Obituary
Vera Charlotte Hanegan McIntyre was born on August 19, 1917, in Fort Benton, Montana to Frank and Anna Marie Hanegan. She passed away peacefully on Jan 11, 2018, at the age of 100, in Carmichael, CA. She was preceded in death by her husband, Donald in May 2010. She is survived by her two sons, Scott Bonilla-McIntyre of Carmichael, CA and Randy McIntyre of Tucson, AZ, and her stepchildren, Ross McIntyre of Florida, Pam Wall of Southern California and Trudy Fimple of Roseville.
Her four brothers, James, Alan, Elmer, Victor, and two sisters, Frances and Alleen, and two stepchildren, Garon and Judy, all preceded her in death.
Vera’s father worked for the Montana Power Company. While on the job a power pole fell with him on it, and he broke many of the bones of his feet. The family went to Oregon seeking medical help for his injury. He did whatever work he could find as jobs were hard to find. Later, her father got a little money for his work injury and used it to buy a service station in Oregon, which did not work out. Before long, they did not have enough money to rent a place. Someone told them about a vacant house they could live in for the winter. This place had lots of apple trees. They picked the apples and sold them for one dollar a pail. In spring, when Vera was six or seven years old, the family picked strawberries to make a living. They got 3 cents a box for picked strawberries.
Vera’s older brother, Victor, finished high school and got a job as a caddie at a local golf course. He met a man who worked for Standard Oil Company in Klamath Falls in 1939. Vera, Frances and her brother Elmer also went to Klamath Falls where Vera got a house cleaning job. Later she got a job at a credit bureau in Klamath Falls and lived there for a couple of years. She then moved to Oakland, California where she worked in the office of a women’s garment company and also at a hospital where she typed surgery reports. After about three years she returned to Portland, Oregon. She worked for Union Oil Company. They transferred her to Hawaii where she worked from 1943 to 1947. She left to go to Oklahoma to help her sister, Frances, with a new born baby. In 1948 she began working for Bank of California in Portland, Oregon, in the Investment department for about 10 years.
In 1958 she came to Carmichael to marry Don who had recently lost his first wife due to a long illness. She became the mother of five step children; Garon, Pam, Ross, Trudy, and Judy ages 6 to 17. She then had two sons, Scott and Randy. She helped her husband, Don, at McIntyre Motors in Carmichael.
Vera’s mother was the first in her family to profess her faith. During a severe thunder storm, Vera’s mother prayed that a preacher would come. Two weeks later Ernest Sylvester and his companion knocked on the door. Vera professed when she was 12 years old through Amy Puckett and her companion in a little school house in the Portland, Oregon area. She has lived a rich faithful professing life for about 88 years. Even through the years when she no longer was able to attend the Sunday morning fellowship meetings or Wednesday night study meetings, she always asked who was in the meetings. Her poor vision did not allow her to read her Bible, but she made a daily effort with the help of her magnifying reader machine to read her Bible. She loved her close friend, Shirley, who came nearly every evening to read the scripture or notes to her. Her son, Scott, also regularly visited and played hymns for her that he downloaded on his cell phone.
We want to thank all the staff at Walnut House who so lovingly cared for her since 2005 when Don and Vera moved there. The last six months the First Call Hospice staff have lovingly cared for Vera. We appreciate their kind and gentle care for her.
Vera’s loving care and attention to others will make her missed by all whose lives she touched.
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