Troy D Stolz

Troy Dale Stolz was born November 18, 1950 in Omak, Washington to parents William and Dorothy Stolz. He passed away at his home in Hermiston, Oregon, November 13, 2018. He was 67.

When Troy was two months old his family moved to John Day, Oregon, where his father continued his work as a Timber Faller. Shortly thereafter they moved to Mt. Vernon, Oregon. Troy, the youngest of three children, attended Elementary, Junior High and graduated Highschool at Mt. Vernon’s school.

In 1973, while employed as a mechanic at John Day’s Ford/Chevy Dealership. Troy married Cheryl Rule, a childhood friend also from Mt. Vernon. The following year their son, William Eugene Stolz, was born in John Day.

The family spent a year in Seneca, Oregon, where Troy worked for Joe Oliver Ranches during frozen winters and hot summers.

A true outdoorsman, Troy helped organize a local black-powder, muzzle-loader club. A crack shot, he treasured all of his black-powder weapons.

In 1976 the family moved to Stanfield, Oregon, where Troy worked for a Hermiston frozen-products company, which later was called Americold. One day coworkers became alarmed when Troy didn’t leave the freezer warehouse for mandatory breaks every half hour. They were relieved when he walked into the break room after cleaning up a spilled pallet of frozen product in an out-of-the-way area. Troy answered their concerns for his wellbeing by saying, “Compared to feeding cattle from horse-drawn sleds outside Seneca all Winter, that freezer is like a Spring afternoon.”

A few months later, Troy qualified to become a mechanic at Lamb Weston’s Hermiston plant. From there he was transferred to their Boardman plant. Coworkers there called him “Norman”.

During his time with Lamb Weston, Troy attended Mechanics school for several weeks in Denver, Colorado.

Troy took great pride in repairing equipment, which no one else had been able to fix, especially if it involved welding. One such project involved a piece of machinery, which continually broke welds. His predecessor’s welding attempts lasted only a few months before requiring more welding. Troy made a metal dye to stamp his name and the date into his weld on that equipment. His weld lasted ten years.

A few years after a divorce in 1989, Troy married Debby Pierce in 1993. She was a coworker at Lamb Weston. They were married 18 years when she died of Cancer, 7/6/2011.

When a sudden diagnosis of Facets Disease forced Troy to retire early, he began an avid regimen of exercises, which extended his mobility long past what his doctors had predicted.

Even though restricted by his disease, Troy carefully pursued his love of fishing, riding his Harley, helping others and keeping his own rigs running, playing his guitar, growing his garden, gathering mushrooms and enjoying his family, his dogs and BBQing in the back yard.

He is survived by son William E. Stolz; grandson Elijah D. Stolz; stepdaughter Lisa Pierce; stepson Christopher Pierce; brother Gary (and wife Marilyn) Stolz and Sister Cathy Stolz.

He was preceded in death by his parents and wife, Debby.

A celebration of his life was held at the Chuckwagon Café, Nov. 18, 2018. That date would have been his 68th birthday.

Burns Mortuary, Hermiston, handled his final arrangements.

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