Obituary: Denzel Maxine Anderson Green
Denzel Maxine Anderson Green
Denzel Maxine Anderson Green passed away December 13, 2021 Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital. Denzel was born May 7, 1924 and was 97 years of age at the time of her passing. Denzel was born in Rainier, Oregon to Jacob Peter and Ruth (Hutson) Anderson of Parkdale, Oregon. Her maternal grandparents, Albert Jerome and Clotilda Whitbeck Hutson had come to Hood River in 1899 from Wisconsin as part of the mill relocation of Capt. Davidson Lumber Company. She spent her whole life living in the Valley except during WWII years when she lived in Portland, Oregon.
On June 30th, 1940, she and Lewis L. Green were married in Stevenson, Washington. The wedding pictures show the extended family on the ferry that crossed the Columbia River during that era. She lived 97 years, 7 months and 13 days and saw monumental changes in Hood River and all of Oregon. She was very proud of her Oregon roots. One of her favorite stories was that as a school girl in 1937, she and her class walked from the Parkdale School to the junction of the old Highway 35 to see the then President of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt’s motorcade drive by on his way to dedicate Timberline Lodge.
As a young mother of Karen and Judy, she was a homemaker, room mother, gardener, seamstress and the go to person for most of the extended family. “Aunt Denzel” was always available to help with the rest of the family at all times.
Her early years working outside of the home were as a seasonal packer for Diamond Fruit and the Parkdale plant. Many of her lifelong friends and neighbors were also employed there. She was there for more than 25 years and was offered a position as a representative for the Teamsters Union in the Hood River office, so she changed careers. Shortly after retirement from the Teamsters, she decided that staying home was not for her and went to work on career number three… she became an employee at Mt. Hood Meadows. She always liked having a job and even many years after retiring from Mt. Hood Meadows, she would say she wanted to get another job.
Denzel was always busy in life. She was a collector of many things and would never pass up a garage or estate sale. She had an amazing array of glassware, rocks (which she dug), dishes and antique items of all sorts.
She was a great role model in life for her daughters, because at 49 years of age, she became a widow as Lewis died unexpectedly in 1973. She forged a whole new way of life and called upon her determination to live independently. She worked hard, planned and was very successful all on her own merits.
In August of 2018, she moved from her home of 66 years in Mt. Hood, Oregon to Parkhurst Place in Hood River. Her yellow house with the “Dun Fix’n” sign on it was a great source of pride for her.
Preceding her in death were her husband, Lewis; parents, Jacob & Ruth; and brother, Darrell Anderson. Denzel is survived by; her daughters, Karen Morgan of Springfield, Oregon and Judy (& John) Svoboda of Springfield, Oregon; grandsons, John Morgan of Springfield, Oregon, Ryan (& Katie) Svoboda of Lafayette, California and Wade Svoboda of Portland, Oregon; great-grandson, Gage Svoboda of Lafayette, California who she lovingly called “Bo Biscuit”; sister, Doris Hill of Parkdale, Oregon; and her special daughter, Rocio Alejo of The Dalles, Oregon.
The family thanks all of the staff at Parkhurst Place for providing a warm and caring home for Denzel’s past three years, the staff at Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital for their compassion and medical care.
A celebration of life will be held at 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, December 22, 2021, at Anderson’s Tribute Center (Funerals • Receptions • Cremations) 1401 Belmont Avenue, Hood River, Oregon 97031. The family request that all in-person attendees wear a mask and be vaccinated. Denzel’s service will be livestreamed through ZOOM and can be accessed on her web guestbook at www.AndersonsTributeCenter.com.
Memorials are encouraged to be made in Denzel’s name to the Hutson Museum, PO BOX 501, Parkdale, Oregon 97041.
