Obituary: Wilma McCarthy

In 1951, she married Robert S. “Dutch” Dutcher. Her family grew in multiples of threes: Three daughters, then three grandchildren and recently three great-grandchildren. She was widowed in 1960 and did her best to take care and support her girls, Susan, Katie and Judy. Her career spanned various occupations: As a kid, she sold worms for bait and worked as a store clerk, as an adult, she worked as a dental assistant, telephone operator, police dispatcher, County Clerk, ski lodge owner, motel owner and lastly postmaster.

In 1966, the family moved to Aspen. Wilma bought the Buckhorn Lodge and settled into the small-town mountain life again and the girls thrived in the busy ski town. In 1972, she married Joe W. McCarthy. After the girls graduated from high school and went to college, Wilma and Joe moved to the Northwest and bought the Scenic Motel in Cascade Locks in 1973. They spent many years fishing and gardening together; she was the Fishing Queen of Drano Lake. She was widowed again in 2004. After her 20-year career as Underwood Postmaster, she retired in 2000 and lived in White Salmon, Washington, until 2017, when she moved to Down Manor in Hood River, Oregon.

She was full of joy for life and had more energy than most. She loved to cook and bake, and her recipe box was ever-growing. She loved to entertain, and people enjoyed being her guests. She was quite stylish and always cared how she looked. She loved animals and surrounded herself with more than a dozen dogs throughout her life. She was an avid gardener and could grow anything. She loved games and was a very sharp card player, in part due to her good memory. Her family lived far and wide and was very important to her, and her three grandchildren loved to come spend time with her and Joe.

Wilma is survived by her children Susan (Gary) of Clayton, Missori, Katie (Dave) of Seattle, Washington, and Judy of Hood River; grandchildren Ben Stormo (Elena and great-granddaughters Leila and Isabel) of Durham, North Carolina, Hayden Miller (Aly) of Sante Fe, New Mexico, and Adrienne Stormo (Drew and great-grandson Harrison) of Woodinville, Washington; nieces Karen Lutz (Mike) and Kelly Mangene; nephew Mike Weaver (Serge); sister-in-law Carma Costello; extended family Eduardo and Yesnia Vargas and their children; and all of the friends of the family to whom she was also known as “mom.” Wilma’s family is grateful to Judy, who provided her continued support to live independently throughout her life.

A celebration of her life will be held on March 22 at 2 p.m. at the Underwood Community Center. Make Wilma happy by planting a garden and enjoying the fruits of your labor or adopting a dog or cat to keep you company.

Arrangements are under the direction of Anderson's Tribute Center, 1401 Belmont Ave., Hood River. Visit www.AndersonsTributeCenter.com to leave a note of condolence for the family.