Fred Lewis Wright

My journey began in Oakdale, California on 29 June 1947. My early childhood was spent on grandfather’s homestead dairy farm, living in the tiny milker’s cottage with my parents. When I reached school age, we moved to a small ranch near Valley Home, where I attended elementary school in a small four-classroom building. A short time later, we moved to Mi-Wuk Village where I was befriended by a native Miwok boy, then to Twain Harte, where I completed second grade. We then returned to the ranch in Valley Home, where I graduated from Ripon Christian Junior High and attended Escalon Union High School, where I played football and ran track. In 1962 my parents sold their small ranch and moved to Oakridge, Oregon, a Cascade Mountains timber town, where my father purchased a retail clothing store. I enrolled in Oakridge High School as a sophomore, and soon adapted from rural to town life. I ran track and played football, helping my assimilation. I describe my football skills as consistent mediocrity with occasional flashes of abject incompetence. My singular highlight was a 76-yard pick-six my Senior year. I remember our persistent, patient Coach Jim Clifton, “who loved us more than we deserved, and suffered us more than he deserved.” I also remember track coach Herb Henry who encouraged and trained me to compete successfully in several events. I remember OHS math and science teacher Jerry Snyder, who brought me books by Einstein and Plank, encouraging me to pursue independent study, which I continued throughout my life. Mr. Snyder was an outstanding teacher who went the extra mile. Although this timber town was dramatically different than my rural ranch life, I have fond memories of friends and the amazing outdoors environment there. My mother’s surprise pregnancy in Oakridge and the birth of my sister Mary in 1963 changed my life. As a 16-year-old, I became the third parent in my family, learning valuable child rearing skills. Following 1965 graduation from Oakridge High School, I took a job with the USFS as a firefighter, earning just enough money for Fall term enrolment into Oregon State University. Five challenging years later, I graduated with degrees in mathematics and civil engineering. During my collegiate years I met and married OSU Education major Sharon Carver. Following graduation, I pursued a career in Civil Engineering, which led us first to San Mateo, CA, then to Mt. Vernon, WA, where we welcomed the birth of our daughter Lisa, then to Eugene, OR where I joined a large international consulting firm. I remember Dan Norris of Brown and Caldwell Consulting Engineers, as a mentor who encouraged innovative, creative approaches to problem solving. With the new responsibility of child rearing, we returned to Corvallis, Oregon, known for its quality schools, as our permanent home. I opened my own consulting engineering practice there in 1990, focused on design and construction of civil infrastructure, concentrated on residential and commercial development in the mid- Willamette Valley, including the massive 800-acre mixed use Timberhill Acres in Corvallis. Continuously active in my professional organization, the American Society of Civil Engineers, since college years, I eventually retired as a Fellow and Life Member. Other enjoyable engineering projects included the Drift Creek Falls suspension Trail Bridge, the OSU Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory, and Summit House Restaurant at Crystal Mountain Ski Resort, with its 800 psf snow loads. I designed various projects for western Native American Reservations, offering me educational opportunities in tribal culture, history and local archeology. My myriad hobbies included men’s league softball and indoor soccer, competitive road running, mountaineering, hiking, backpacking, birding and wine touring with my wife Sharon, family and friends. From childhood, I always enjoyed reading, more recently Native American and Latin American literature. My Ancestry family tree currently includes 67,000 documented relatives. With Sharon, I enjoyed attending the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, local plays and live music events. We loved small jazz venues. I played online chess with friends and family throughout my life. Music was a continuous presence in my life with Sharon. I was very fortunate to find a partner who loved the mountains as much as I did. Together we explored the Oregon and Washington Cascades on foot, and much of Yosemite National Park, where Sharon summited Clouds Rest with me. The Enchantment Lakes of the North Cascades, Mt. Ranier NP, Olympics NP Hoh River Trail were memorable, as was Eagle Cap Wilderness in the Wallowa Mountains. We enjoyed numerous backpacks in Three Sisters Wilderness, some with our young daughter Lisa. In Montana, we enjoyed the mountains on horseback, as well. While in In the Taylor Range, I had the opportunity to summit Koch Peak. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to climb most of the Cascade volcanoes, some more than once. Washington’s Mt. Baker was my favorite climb, Oregon’s North Sister the most challenging, which I summited twice but never felt comfortable on the “terrible traverse” approaching the summit block. One nostalgic memory was Cold Mountain in Yosemite NP, where I was accompanied by my father on his first and only climb. During my engineering career, I spent fifteen years as a professional part-time soccer coach, training U-11 through U-19 elite club players, primarily girls, but I loved training middle school kids of either gender. Completing the state and national soccer coaching schools, which I enjoyed immensely, I secured my U.S. Soccer Federation “Life” license in 1985. With wife Sharon, designated team “soccer mom” we participated in numerous soccer tournaments, traveling and competing against premier teams from Oregon, Washington, California and British Columbia. My civic activities included the Corvallis Planning Commission, several Corvallis City Council committee appointments, and donated engineering services to the Corvallis Parks Department and other non-profits. Fred is survived by his wife of 55 years, Sharon Wright of Corvallis; daughter Lisa; Lisa’s husband her son Giovanni and daughter Sofia ; sister Mary French (Brad) of Beaverton, OR; sister-in-law Janet Peterson of West Linn, OR; nephews Jim Galloway, Scott Peterson and niece Mikelle Peterson.

Fred Lewis Wright

June 29, 1947 - September 11, 2024