JOIN US FOR A VERY SPECIAL MEMORIAL EVENT IN HELLS CANYON
Remembering Tracy
A Celebration of Life for Tracy L. Vallier
SEPTEMBER 19, 1936 - AUGUST 28, 2022
Saturday, July 22, 2023
VENUE CHANGE
Due to extreme heat ( 100 degrees +/- ) in the Canyon, we have decided to move the location of the Memorial to an indoor, air-conditioned venue about 18 miles up the highway. We need to ensure the health & safety of our guests and make this event enjoyable and memorable.
We will now meet at:
Halfway Lions Club
235 Lions Street, Halfway, OR 97834
( see the Google Maps link below )
"A blazing Texas sun casts a long shadow off the stadium’s roof as I cross home plate. Dad has his arms around Suzie and they are jumping up and down. Coaches hug me and teammates pummel my back and shoulders. It is the happiest day of my life."
Tail Gunner, A Crow in the Seven Devils Mountains, © 2011 Tracy Vallier
Our Itinerary
Friday, July 21st
Many of us will be arriving, to Halfway or the Campground, in the mid to late afternoon. There is a casual eatery just up the road from the campground called the Hells Canyon Inn ( 53945 OR-86, Halfway, OR 97834 ). We plan to congregate and mingle from about 4PM to 8PM. All are welcome and encouraged to stop by.
Saturday, July 22nd
New Venue: Halfway Lions Club, Noon to 5:00 pm
18 miles up State Highway 86 from the Copperfield Campground ( see map below )
The new Lions Club venue will open for us at 12:00 Noon. We will be providing deli-style sub sandwiches made fresh in the morning by a local restaurant. Side dishes and beverages will be provided as well. We will do our best to have plenty of food and drink. Feel free to bring anything that you are fond of in that regard.
Comments will commence about 1:00-1:30PM and continue until all have had the opportunity to speak. As this is a "celebration of Tracy's life" we anticipate that many will share memories, stories, and anecdotes.
The Lions Club will allow us to stay beyond 4:00 PM if we'd like. The Club is hosting a "Rocky Mountain Oyster Feed" outside in the adjacent park starting at 4:00PM. They will have exclusive use of the facility's kitchen while we are holding our memorial.
We've had some questions regarding attire. This is not a formal event or a funeral. The event is a celebration of life . . . a festive event. Please dress casually and err on the side of comfort. Some will be wearing shorts and t-shirts - whatever you are comfortable wearing is fine.
Copperfield Campground, About 7:00 pm until ?
We plan to gather at the Copperfield Campground in the evening for a very informal campfire event. It will still be warm (close to 80-85 degrees at 7pm), and the campfire is for ambience, rather than heat. The sun will set over the mountain and the area will cool down into the evening. We may spread some of Dad's ashes in the River and near his Commemoration plaque. Anyone is welcome.
Sunday, July 23rd
We plan to meet at the Copperfield Campground at 9:00AM, then proceed north along the Idaho side of the Snake River to the Hells Canyon Dam. The trip is 22 miles each way (45 min). Tracy's wish was to have his ashes spread in the river just north of the dam so they would travel, unimpeded, to the Pacific Ocean via the Snake & Columbia Rivers.
The Lions Club
Halfway Lions Club
235 Lions Street, Halfway, OR 97834
Copperfield Campground
Copperfield was a mining town known as “the rowdiest town in Oregon” in the early 1900s. Fire destroyed the town in August 1915. The park was built in 1965 on the old town site of Copperfield, Oregon.
Copperfield Campground was one of Tracy’s favorite gateways to the canyon. It’s located about 20 miles south of the Hells Canyon Dam, the last dam before the Snake River runs north through the most rugged section of Hells Canyon. This was Tracy’s home away from home, his “mistress”.
Friends and family, in conjunction with Idaho Power, arranged for a commemoration plaque to be mounted on a large rock in the campground in 2014. When we began discussing Tracy’s memorial and celebration of life, this site was easily our first choice.
Campground Info
Address: 49815 Lakeshore Rd, Halfway, OR 97840
Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible entrance and parking lot
Amenities: Dogs allowed, picnic area with tables, public restrooms, free day-use, 12 acres of manicured lawn, paved roads, terraced landscaping and numerous trees.
