Dean L. Warrick 1934 - 2022

Dean Warrick, former longtime resident and farmer near Amity, Oregon, passed into the presence of his Lord Jesus on November 10, 2022, in Keizer.

Dean was born August 23, 1934, in Clarinda, Iowa, the second of five children born to Gerald and Myra (Eshelman) Warrick. He and his older brother shared many days of fun and hijinks during their youth. Despite the fact the nation was in the Great Depression, their parents and grandparents worked hard to meet their needs. They also were expected to help out and learned early the importance of hard work and family.

The family initially relocated to Vanport, Oregon, when Gerald found work building ships at Swan Island Shipyard in Portland during World War 11. After a brief return to Iowa, they permanently relocated in 1946 to the Amity area. Dean attended Amity schools, where he eventually became a very good football player. He played in the very first East-West Shrine All-Star Football Game in 1952. He had the great joy and privilege to participate in the 70th anniversary parade in the summer of 2022.

Dean met his future wife, Gail Christensen, while attending Amity High School. He served in the U.S. Army from 1954 to 1956 as part of the U.S. forces in Japan. He served as an administrative soldier (sort of like Radar O’Reilly of M*A*S*H, also an Iowa boy), first with the Ninth Corps HQ, and then at the 11th Evac Hospital in Sendai, Japan. He dearly loved his country, and his Army service was a source of great pride and a sense of privilege to have served. Following his Army service, he and Gail were married on July 1, 1956, in McMinnville. He attended Oregon State, and then the two of them began operating the family farm southwest of Amity. They raised two children together, David and Jannell. Dean was a very devoted family man. A few days before Jannell was born, a significant snowstorm closed the road to their home. He went out with the tractor and made sure a clear path was available to get Gail to the hospital when the time came. This was typical of his character, committed to serving his family at all times.

After many years of farming, Dean and Gail retired and did a lot of traveling and exploring together. Gail died of cancer in November of 1997. He continued his travels, and while on a trip to Arizona, he met his future wife, Darlene. They married in 1999 and were together until his passing. He passed peacefully with loved ones nearby, Jannell and Darlene being his caregivers.

Dean is survived by his wife, Darlene; son, David (Micki) Warrick; daughter, Jannell (Brian) Berg; grandsons, Kevin (Heather) and Matt Hagen; granddaughter, Stephani (Ryan) Wilson; and four great-granddaughters, Marcy, Jovie, Sloane and Claire. He was preceded in death by his youngest, brother Dennis; and is survived by his brothers, Richard (Carolyn) Warrick and Ron Warrick; and his sister, Karen (Don) Milks. He also is survived by 11 nieces and nephews, their children and grandchildren.

Donations in lieu of flowers may be made at Donate — East West Shriners Football (eastwestshrinefootball.com), an organization for which Dean was a longtime enthusiastic supporter.