Beverly Marguerite Durham

Beverly Marguerite Durham [nee Cochran] died Sunday at the Marian Estates in Sublimity after a long battle with cancer. She celebrated her 90th birthday with her sister Carol Linneman of Merced, California, daughter Shane Fritz of Stayton with Doug Fritz, son Nick Cochran of Santa Ana, California, with Maia Huntington, son “Fritz” Baier of Aiea, Hawaii, granddaughters Lara Fritz of McMinnville and Sara Elkington of Stayton with Seth Elkington, and great-grandson Charlie Elkington. She is also survived by grandchildren Leo Baier, Erin Baier Billmayer and Jasmine Baier Hart and great-grandchildren Kaylie, Caleb and Colin Hart. Bev was preceded in death by her parents, Paul Benjamin Cochran and Marguerite Katherine [Broemel], son Paul Jeffrey Cochran, her first husband Nick Sidoti, and second husband Marv Durham. A resident of Philomath since 1968, she was buried at Mt. Union Cemetery. Born in New Jersey, Bev attended school there, in Boston, and in Longbeach, California, where she graduated from high school and attended Longbeach City College. She moved to Honolulu, where she attended the University of Hawaii, and wrote for and was a story editor and assistant to the editor of the University’s student literary magazine, Kapa, all while working full-time at Liberty House department store and raising two of her children. After earning a B.A. she moved back to California, where she taught one year of English each at the high schools of LeGrand and Chowchilla. Following the death of her oldest child in the Vietnam War, she moved to Philomath to be near her mother. She took a job at the English Language Institute of Oregon State University, teaching English to students from all over the world while earning two Master’s degrees. Bev’s 22-year career there touched countless lives around the globe and led her to a second marriage of 39 years between “Heavenly Beverly” and “Marvelous Marv.” As a public servant, Bev enjoyed working at the OSU Folk Thrift Store. A voracious reader, she collected hundreds of books and attended two book clubs. An activist, she attended classes and discussion groups relating to the environment and world peace. As an animal lover, she provided a second chance for many forsaken dogs and cats. Bev attended the Episcopal Church of the Good Samaritan. Beverly Marguerite Durham loved Oregon and the Willamette Valley. Her family misses her tremendously but they carry on her spirit and joie de vivre.

Tributes

Beverly Marguerite Durham

July 25, 1928 - August 5, 2018