Harold Fairchild
Born
September 12, 1926, in Bonners Ferry to Glen
Elmer Fairchild and Dora Ruth Gingles Fairchild.
They were living at Eastport, Idaho, at the time
he was born.In 1928 the family moved into town. In 1936 they moved on the North Bench west of the Three Mile. His dad worked for the Border Patrol and farmed.
Harold graduated from Bonners Ferry High School in 1947 after serving two years in the Navy during World War II.
He married Lorreta Faye Watson on June 14, 1947, in Bonners Ferry.
For the first year of marriage Harold logged with his brother Glen. Then they moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, so Harold could go to the Spartan School of Aeronautics. Their son, Jimmy Glen, was born there in 1949. Then he went to work at Felts Field in Spokane, Washington. as an airplane mechanic.
In 1950, they moved to Coulee Dam, Washington, to work on a Seaplane base as a mechanic. While there, he got his pilot license and also became a flight instructor. In 1951 their son Harold Lee was born while living there.
The family moved to Moses Lake, Washington, in 1952 to continue as a mechanic and flight instructor until 1955, when he went to work for Boeing.
In 1955 Pennie Lynn and in 1957 Cindy Rae were born while living in Moses Lake. Between 1962-1969 they lived in Slidell, Louisiana, and Titusville, Florida, to work on Nasa'a Apollo/Saturn V that was launched in 1969. While living in Slidell, their son Scott Allen was born in 1965.
They moved to Auburn, Washington, in 1969 to continue working for Boeing. Harold found it hard to be so close to home and not to be there. So he bought some land from his brother Glen in 1970 and started building their new home west of the Three Mile Junction. After returning to Bonners Ferry, he first worked for the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge for a while before going to work for Lakeshore Motors, now known as Riverside Auto Center.
Harold was briefly in partnership in the "Lucky Three Used Autosales & Repair" with Chet Glauner and Leon Anderson before starting his own shop in 1974 at his home. Through "Hal's Repair" Harold and Lorreta enjoyed meeting and serving many of the people in the area until he had to close his shop due to his Parkinson's disease.
He enjoyed camping, hunting, fishing, hiking, and huckleberry picking. He was preceded in death by his wife Loretta in 2008 and son Hal in 2009 as well as his brothers.
He is survived by his children, Jim (Juanita) Fairchild of Bonners Ferry; Pennie (Charles) Frame of Sumner, Washington; Cindy (Milton) Atkins of Bonners Ferry; and Scott (Amanda) Fairchild of Bonners Ferry; a sister, Dorothy (Ralph) Chicks of Sandpoint. Also surviving are grandchildren Troy, Clark, Robbie, Glen, Gus, Keith, Jessica, Daniel, Julia, Andrew, Allyson, Douglas, Travis, Kody, Ashley and Russell; and 13 great-grandchildren as well as several nieces and nephews.
Private interment will be in Grandview Cemetery. Family and friends are invited to sign Harold’s online guest book at www.bonnersferryfuneralhome.com.