Granville J. "Andy" Whittle

Granville J. “Andy” Whittle, 85, of Wapato, answered the loving call of his Lord and Savior on Tuesday December 14, 2010. He was born September 19, 1925 one of nine children born to Olia R. and Fanny J. (Luttrell) Whittle in Iberia MO. Granville attended school in the Iberia area with his eldest sister, Irene being his first teacher.

Granville worked on his family farm until enlisting in the U.S. Army at the age of 19. As the story goes, he and his childhood friend Ralph Dearduff wanted to be Marines together. After enlisting, however, Ralph was sent to the Navy and Granville to the Army. He served his country faithfully from Sept. 1944 to Nov. 1946. As a medical Tech, PFC he treated the sick and battle injured. It was during a time of reprieve he learned of his beloved sister Irene’s death; she had been deceased several months, Granville was heartbroken. In September 1949 he fulfilled his desired to be a U.S. Marine and re-enlisted in the Corps and served the next four years during which he earned the rank of Sergeant and fought on the front lines for the Pacific engagement. He was totally, wholeheartedly committed to serving his country and protecting freedom and stories of his dedication, valor and compassion for his fellow soldiers will always be remembered. He was a Proud American Veteran.

Granville came to the Yakima Valley over 50 years ago where he met and married Dolores Hoveland. They made their home in Wapato for the past 38 years and attended the Union Gap First Baptist Church.

Always a Missourian he never lost his wonderful drawl. Hunting, fishing, camping, just generally being outdoors and telling his adventures was his life. Working in Alaska with his brothers in the 1950’s added yet more tales. The stories and how Granville relayed them will never be forgotten. Granville was a staunch supporter of the NRA and an active member (56 years) of the Carpenters Union 770. He worked in construction and on many of our state dams and helped design and build several businesses throughout Yakima. He loved creating and tinkering and his “farm”. His strongest belief was: “Family is everything.”

Granville is survived by his loving wife of over 50 years, Dolores Whittle of Wapato; daughters, Flora (Dennis) Jones of Longview, WA and Kelley (Don) Whittle-Andrews of Clatskanie, OR; grandchildren, Hilary, Holly, Zach, Rachael and Ethan; four great grandchildren; sisters, Nina (Sonny) Jacobs of Jefferson City, MO and Lois Brown of Marshalltown, Iowa; sisters-in-law, Net, Shirley and Beryl all of Missouri; innumerous as the stars nephews and nieces of whom he loved all dearly and the two special guys he was teaching the finer things of life to, Dale Swartout of Yakima and Patrick Gallardo of Wapato.

He was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Irene and all of his beloved brothers, Vern, Farris, Gayle, Gene and Jim.

All our love … see you on the other side …

To share a memory of Granville, visit www.langevin-mussetter.com.

Visitation will be 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Tuesday, December 21, 2010 at Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, Yakima.

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m., Wednesday, December 22nd at Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home.

Burial will follow at Tahoma Cemetery, Yakima.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made in Granville’s name to help with funeral cost or to Pleasant Hills Cemetery in Missouri in care of Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, 1010 W. Yakima Ave., Yakima, WA 98902

rrangements under the direction of Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, Yakima, WA.