Feb. 5, 1934 - Jul. 21, 2024
Date of Service: Jul. 29, 2024
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Service Program
RUPERT – Clarice Anna (Hill) Grant was born February 5, 1934, in the small rural hamlet of Aptos, California, the fifth of seven children born to Otto Hiram Hill and Hilda (Wiebe) Hill. While living in Aptos, Otto, Hilda and their six children born during that time operated an apple orchard overlooking the Pacific Ocean, using mostly horses for power and determination for capital. Rainwater was funneled to cisterns for drinking, bread was made at home in a wood-fired oven and acquiring a few generator-powered electric lights was an exciting family achievement! To a young girl and her siblings, the hills and beaches around Aptos provided the perfect setting for games of Flying Dutchman, Run Sheep Run, picnics, sleepovers, sings and Sundays when the family would stand down from the work of life to share faith.
In 1948, the family left Aptos and moved to Northport, Washington, where their seventh child was born. Located just seven miles south of the Canadian border in the northeast corner of Washington State, here the Douglas Fir trees were tall and straight and the winter snow fell so softly it would pile three feet high on top of a fence post. In Northport Clarice grew into a lively and polished young woman, helping her mother preserve the garden and run the house, and helping her dad care for their cows and small logging business. After finishing high school, she put her sharp mind to work in a bank, and her well-developed cooking skills to work, winning the annual cherry pie baking contest.
Clarice’s life took a new direction during the summer of 1953 when, at the young age of 19, she met a shy, lanky (but handsome!) California cowboy while visiting her sister Kathleen in Buttonwillow, California. Douglas, or Doug as he was known, had grown up in the sparsely populated area around Shandon, California, and having learned courtship from reading every Zane Gray novel ever written, was likely a diamond in the rough to the outgoing and talkative young Miss Clarice. But Clarice saw the genuine smile, sensed the genuine love, and accepted Doug’s courting. Clarice and Doug were married that next January, tying the knot just before Doug was shipped off to Germany by the United States Army.
The next two months of Doug’s enlistment brought loneliness for both newlyweds, as military service interrupted their young love. Then came the joy of reuniting as Douglas, after being promoted to Corporal, was able to bring his bride to Berlin for the final 18 months of his service tour. Together they enjoyed exploring foreign lands, having only Doug’s military service to intrude on their discovery of the joys of their new life together. Boxes were filled with photographic slides the couple took all over Germany with Doug’s newly-acquired Rolleiflex 120 mm camera. Lifelong friends were made as they connected with those with whom they shared their faith, both in the armed services and amongst the general German population.
Perhaps the most exciting thing about Germany was learning that their young family would officially be starting just as Doug’s tour was completed! Upon their discharge and return to California, Pamella Kay Grant, the first of what would be seven children, was born. Six more, Gwendolyn, Douglas Jr., Dean, Duane, Bonnie, and David would join the family over the next nine years, along with regarded-as-son, Gary Paul.
Upon release from military service, Doug and Clarice became contract farmers in Paso Robles, California, managing a large dryland farm for a share of the profit. Soon they heard of an opportunity to acquire their own farmland through entry into a “Veteran’s Preference” land lottery. Their entry in the lottery was chosen, and they became the conditional owners of 240 acres of dry sagebrush located ten miles northeast of Rupert, Idaho. The conditions for ownership included requirements for building a home containing one bedroom for each two persons plus an indoor bathroom, clearing the ground and installing ditches, and planting and harvesting crops in an economically sustainable way. Doug and Clarice ploughed every dollar they had or could borrow into the venture, overcoming hardships shared by all “Northside Homesteaders” of the era. The farm they started continues in the family today and is a testament to their perseverance.
To her children, their spouses, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, Clarice was a person of kindness shared without limit. Clarice adored gathering people in her warm home. She delighted in setting a beautiful table with her best China, serving meticulously prepared meals topped off with her homemade coffee-can pudding—often using recipes handed down from loved ones. All were welcome, and no one ever left hungry.
Clarice embraced learning, ability, resilience, confidence, and achievement, always balancing these empowering traits with faith, thoughtfulness, gratefulness, empathy, and compassion. She also instilled in her children a deep appreciation for these qualities, with an admonishment to “remember whose you are” each time one of her offspring ventured out into the world. Being a helpmate to her husband and a mother to her children were Clarice’s mission and life’s work, and she stayed at it until she was finished.
Music was Clarice’s talent and her indulgence. She played for countless weddings and funerals for friends and strangers alike, just because she liked to. At home Clarice would lead the family in raucous renditions of “Jericho Road” and other old-time redemption hymns, then move on to a stylistic version of “Under the Double Eagle” or “Tennessee Waltz.” In the evenings the kids would be lulled off to sleep with the soothing rhythm of familiar hymns drifting downstairs, a sure sign that all was good, and the day was done.
In her later years, she enjoyed sunny winters spent with Doug in Glendale, Arizona, where she cherished the fellowship of new and old friends alike. Here, Clarice continued to exercise her love of flowers and her disdain for weeds through gardening.
Clarice’s faith was her grounding. In her advanced years when reading no longer came easy, she found comfort in the simplicity of holding her bible. Her faith was her rock. Clarice passed peacefully at home on Sunday, July 21, 2024, having lived a full life with the love of her family and many friends, and ending her journey with the hope of eternity.
Clarice is survived by her sister, Kathleen Paddon; regarded-as-son, Gary Paul; her children, daughter, Pamella (Kalvin-deceased) Miller and grandchildren Kenyon, Ryan and Suzanne; daughter, Gwendolyn (Douglas) Whitney and grandchildren Nathan, Kori Anna, Jerrod and Kristen; son, Douglas E. (Laurel) Grant Jr. and grandchildren Chyla and Adam; son, Duane (Kim) Grant and grandchildren Dustin and Taylor (mother, Laura Grant); daughter, Bonnie Wylde and children Andrew and Hailey (father, Jeff Wylde); and son, David Grant and grandchild Rhiannon Betts (mother, Kathy Rodriguez); step-grandson, Aaron Fritz; and 16 great-grandchildren. Clarice was preceded in death by her husband, Douglas Grant; infant son, Dean; son-in-law, Kalvin Miller; siblings, Jacob Hill, Esther Corcoran, Shirley Fortune, Otto (Bud) Hill Jr. and Myra Hill.
Family and friends may call at a visitation to be held from 3 until 5 p.m. Sunday, July 28, at Rasmussen-Wilson Funeral Home, located at 1350 E 16th St., Burley, Idaho, with the funeral service to follow at 11 a.m. Monday, July 29, at the same address. Following the interment at Rupert Cemetery, the family invites attendees to a luncheon at Morey’s Steakhouse, located at 219 E 3rd, Burley, Idaho. There will be an open mic provided for those who wish to share memories.
A live webcast of the Funeral Service will be available and maintained at the following link: https://youtu.be/Ib6rjQDjWTo.
