Ellis Ray Cohoon Obituary (1916

Ellis Ray Cohoon, age 95 passed away on Nov. 23, 2011. He was born Jan. 11, 1916 to Walter and Grace Cohoon in Waitsburg, WA. He attended schools in Walla Walla and Ellensburg. In 1936, he enlisted in the 3rd Signal Company at Fort Lewis, WA, hoping to study radio communications. Before World War II began, he was sent to Fort Ord, CA. When war was declared with Germany and Japan, he was sent to Camp Posten, AZ. The company in which he served built a telephone line from a Japanese internment camp to Barstow, CA. Later Ellis helped install phone lines along the newly constructed Al-Can Highway. After that job, he transferred to the Eighth Air Force and spent the rest of the war in England. At war's end he returned to the U.S. on the Queen Mary, converted then to a troopship. He received an honorable discharge from the Army and went to work in Civil Service at Mr. Rainier Ordinance Depot near Tacoma, WA. During the 50's and 60's Ellis attended electronics training schools in Fort Monmouth, NJ, Huntsville, AL and Aberdeen, MD. He also studied at Hewlett-Packard in CA. In 1963 he was transferred to the Metrology Lab at Tooele Ordinance Depot in Utah. In 1967 he moved again to the Metrology Lab at Keyport, WA and has lived in the Silverdale area ever since. He retired from government service in 1973. Ellis enjoyed many hobbies, including woodworking, constructing electronics equipment from Heathkits and vegetable gardening. He built a scenic and computerized platform for his HO electric trains. Ellis and his wife Rachelle recently celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary. He is also survived by his daughter Carolyn Peterson (David) and son, John (Cathy). His sister, Lois Shelton (Kenny)of Walla Walla. We will dearly miss our loving husband and father.