Arlene Fay Collier

Arlene Collier passed away on March 30, 2021 from heart failure at the age of 94.  Born in Fairmount, Minnesota to John and Sadie Petersen, Arlene was the seventh of nine children.  The Petersen family moved to Montana, then Independence, Oregon before settling in the Turner area where the family owned and operated a dairy farm.

Arlene attended Cloverdale Grade School and graduated from Turner High School.  While working at the Myers grocery store in Turner, she met a tall, handsome young man named Charles ‘Cal’ Collier.  They were married October 24, 1948.  They soon had two sons, Jeffrey and Michael.  While the boys were young, Arlene was a Cub Scout and 4-H leader while helping organize the Marion County Lamb Show.  She also worked on the farm with Cal raising Hampshire and Romney sheep.  Arlene was probably best known to the Turner community during her twenty-plus years as a Cascade School District bus driver while also overseeing the district’s transportation department. 

An avid golfer, Arlene was active in the women’s golf leagues at both Battle Creek and Santiam golf courses.  She loved teaching her grandchildren to hit golf balls in her front yard, where she also hosted a friendly golf tournament called the Sheep Pasture Shootout.  Arlene and Cal enjoyed many hours playing cards where she enjoyed winning quarters from her family and friends.  On Sundays, her and Cal would fish along the Mill Creek or up the Santiam Canyon with their sons – a favorite family tradition.

Arlene is survived by her son, Mike Collier and his wife Kathy, and her daughter-in-law Colleen Collier, as well as five grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren.  She was preceded in death by her husband Charles, her son Jeff, and eight siblings. 

A small family service will be held Friday, April 9, 2021, with a Petersen/Collier family reunion planned for this summer in her honor.

The family would like to thank Hidden Lakes and Marian Estates for the care they provided Arlene over the past 3 years.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a contribution be made to First Tee firsttee.org, an organization that introduces the game of golf to young people.