Harry Arnold Olson

Harry Arnold Olson was born in a farmhouse in Kirkwood, Illinois, on June 24, 1933, to Harry and Lois Ethel Hull Olson, who paid the expense of his birth with a hay rack load of corn. In the mid-1930s, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt was reelected and New Deal programs were bringing hope, the family packed up the Ford and moved to an 80-acre farm in Gooding, Idaho, a town where Uncles Ernest, Al, and Elmer Olson, from Nasum, Sweden, farmed.

Harry (who went by Arnold in childhood) was raised in Gooding, the second of four boys, with brothers Kenneth, Paul, and Rick Olson. The family tended 200 chickens, milked 20 cows, and raised Russet potatoes, alfalfa, and other crops. Harry rode a workhorse named Snicklefritz, fished for Perch with his brothers, and went to 9-cent movies, such as Abbott and Costello, or silent films. His Mom was a kind, fun-loving woman who worked hard on the farm and traveled to Bliss, Idaho, at 4:30 AM daily to work as a baker, where customers enjoyed her 20 pie recipes. His Dad, a strong man with a sense of humor and a dignified Swedish accent, emigrated from Nasum, Sweden, on the ship "Drottningholm" on March 28, 1923, after a childhood spent as a farm laborer. The family raised their children in the Lutheran Church.

Harry graduated from Gooding High School in 1951, completed Henager's Business College in Utah in 1952, and attended the University of Utah in Salt Lake City before he was drafted into the U.S. Army on December 15, 1953. After time at Fort Ord, CA, Fort Lee, VA, and Fort Sill, OK, he subsequently served in Korea during the Armistice for 21 months. Upon discharge, he resumed studies in Utah from 1955 - 57 and transferred to the University of Idaho in Moscow in 1957, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Education in 1959. For 30 years, from 1959 to 1989, he taught courses such as world history, U.S. history, and geography at McLoughlin Union High School in Milton Freewater, OR

In 1981, Harry began researching global issues in preparation for a new course. He was the first teacher in Oregon to develop a global studies course, even before the state-mandated schools to include the material in their curriculums. A college professor nominated him for the Phi Delta Kappa award for service and leadership in education. He received the award on March 30, 1983. He hoped his courses would broaden students' outlook on other cultures and help to eliminate prejudice in the local community and abroad. He was known as a kind and gentle teacher. He felt that gentleness is missing in the world and is necessary to bring about harmony among people. He supported fair trade to eliminate poverty and enable sustainable development, as well as Maryknoll activities around the world.

In 1961, Harry met the new Spanish teacher at Mac Hi, Carolyn Thomsen, who was then a recent graduate of the University of Portland. Carolyn later taught English as a Second Language in migrant education programs in Milton Freewater and Walla Walla. Students took an interest in the young couple's respectful courtship, as they were invited by Mac Hi staff to gatherings and attended musical events and plays at Whitman College. With a genuine emphasis on propriety as role models and teachers, the couple recalled with amusement how worried they'd been during courtship when Harry received a traffic ticket for "one-arm driving" because his arm was around Carolyn.

Harry became a lifelong, practicing Catholic in Milton Freewater and Walla Walla, most recently as an Assumption Church parishioner. He and Carolyn were married on April 20, 1963, in St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. He was a devoted husband, blessed with a happy, 59-year marriage. Harry and Carolyn also served as a Marriage Encounter team couple. They enjoyed traveling in Europe, Canada, Mexico, Russia, and the U.S., as well as gardening, camping, supporting charitable causes, and fostering a child with Down Syndrome. Harry was a wonderfully kind father to his two children, Karen and Brian Olson, and also adored his grandchildren, Lark and Wynn Olson.

Harry passed away on July 15, 2022. He is survived by his wife, Carolyn Olson, of Walla Walla; his daughter, Karen, of Beaverton, Oregon; his son, Brian, of Kalispell, Montana; his granddaughter, Lark, of Missoula, Montana; his grandson, Wynn, of Kalispell, Montana; his youngest brother, Rick Olson (and Rick's wife, Cindy, and their children Steven Olson and Brandi McCarroll, of Pocatello, Idaho); descendants of brother Ken and Jeanette Olson (Ann Poffenberger, Kathryn, and Eric Olson, of Sacramento, California); and his sister-in-law, Cindy J. Olson of Twin Falls, Idaho (wife of Paul, and their children Chad and Cameron Olson).

The funeral Mass will be held on Tuesday, August 16, 2022, at 10:00 AM, at St. Patrick Catholic Church, 425 W Alder St, Walla Walla. The burial service will be held immediately after Mass at the Milton Freewater Cemetery, 54700 Milton Cemetery Rd, Milton Freewater, OR.

Donations may be made to Doctors Without Borders, Maryknoll Affiliates, The ARC of Oregon, or to the Cure Alzheimer's Fund through Herring Groseclose Funeral Home, 315 W Alder St, Walla Walla WA  99362