Cecil Jay Graham

Cecil Jay "CJ" Graham, a resident of Garden Oasis Assisted Living in Ephrata and former resident of Colonial Vista Retirement Center in Wenatchee, responded to God's call home at 1:16 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5, 2009, at Central Washington Hospital. He will be missed tremendously. Cecil was born on December 12, 1919, in Culver City, CA. He met his future wife, Mary Tabitha Brown in a two-room schoolhouse in the town of Girard (now Woodland Hills) in Southern California in 1928. He was 9, she was 7. They were married April 22, 1943, in Canoga Park, CA and celebrated their 65th anniversary in 2008. Cecil was the class president of the first graduating class to receive 4-year bachelor degrees from California Polytechnic Institute, San Luis Obispo, CA in 1942. After graduation, he went to work for the State of California as a border quarantine inspector. He went into the Army in September of 1942, and served honorably in WWII until his discharge in January 1946. Cecil received several citations, including the Bronze Star and the Philippine Liberation Medal. He continued to serve in the California Army National Guard, retiring in 1964, as 1st Battalion Commander of the 184th Infantry in Sacramento with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Cecil's civilian career was with the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. He started in Fair Oaks, CA, where he and Mary raised their family until 1964, when they moved to Ephrata, WA. They moved back to the Sacramento area in 1970, and he retired from the Bureau in 1976, as Chief, Land Resources Branch. Cecil received the Silver Award for Meritorious Service from the Department of the Interior after 30 years of service. He and Mary traveled extensively in retirement, crossing the United States at least twice and visiting Australia, Canada, the South Pacific and the United Kingdom. They eventually settled in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State, where they enjoyed the Strait of Juan de Fuca for many years before moving to Wenatchee, WA to be closer to family. He is survived by one brother, John Graham; his sons, Samuel of Houston, TX and Gordon of Soap Lake, WA; grandchildren, Michael Graham of San Antonio, Jennifer Griego of Houston, Tabitha McKee, David Graham and Matthew Graham, all of East Wenatchee, and Jay Graham of Boise; and seven great-grandchildren. Cecil was preceded in death by his only daughter, Carolyn in 2004; and his wife, Mary in September, 2008. A Celebration of Life for Cecil Graham will be held at a later date.

Cecil Jay Graham

December 19, 1920 - August 5, 2009