Thomas Willard Maupin

Thomas (Tom) Willard Maupin passed away on April 7th at Harney District
Hospital after suffering a series of heart attacks in recent months.
Tom was born June 21, 1937 in Ontario, Oregon to Bob and Mary (Dowell)
Maupin. One year later he was joined by his brother Charles. A young Tom, unable
to pronounce “brother” gave him the nickname Bud which stuck for life. A second
brother, John, was born in 1942 and sister Mary Anne six years later in 1948. Bob
was the buckaroo boss for numerous ranches in Malheur and Harney counties
which kept a lot of Tom’s childhood on the move. After starting school in Weiser,
Idaho Tom attended class at Sod House, Vale, Drewsey and Pine Creek grade
schools. However, most of his later grade school and high school days were spent
in the Drewsey/Pine Creek community where Bob was working for the Pine Creek
Ranch.
In the fall of 1952, Tom got acquainted with his future wife Delta Jenkins as they
started their four year stay at Crane Union High School. While in high school Tom
competed in football, track, baseball, and basketball. Tom, Delta and Bud all
graduated in 1956.
Following their high School graduation, Tom and Bud enlisted in the United States
Air Force in the fall of 1957. On their bus ride to the Boise airport, the duo stopped
by the College of Idaho to visit Delta and fellow member of the class of ’56, Mary
Opie, neither girl realizing they would go on to marry the Maupin brothers. Right
away, Tom went to Edwards Air Force Base for Technical School where he was
trained in aircraft mechanics. However, for the majority of his Air Force Career he
drove visiting commanders and important guests to and from Elmendorf Air Force
Base in Fairbanks, Alaska.
Discharged on April 8, 1960, Tom came to Drewsey and worked for Francis Miller
and Ned Howard. In the summer of that year, Tom found work with Jenkins
Brothers Ranch in Diamond, Oregon. Guitar in hand, Tom made his move on
former CUHS classmate and new Diamond School teacher, Delta Jenkins. The
couple married at Pioneer Presbyterian Church in Burns, Oregon the day after
Christmas in 1961. Tom and Delta spent their first year married in various cow
camps while Tom continued work for Jenkins Brothers. After the summer ended in
1962, Tom and Delta began work for Delta’s grandmother Adele Paul at the ranch
Delta grew up on in Virginia Valley. After Mrs. Paul’s death in 1963 they worked
for Delta’s patents Tom and Dorothy Jenkins until 1972, when Tom and Delta
leased the ranch from her parents. It was here that their three children were born,
Melinda in 1962, Polly in 1964 and Jeff in 1968.
In 1999 Tom and Delta retired to their ranch outside of Crane, Oregon where Tom
had more time to spend enjoying his hobbies. He had a very impressive gun
collection he acquired throughout his life and enjoyed reading and re-reading his
collection of Guns and Ammo magazines. He has kept every issue since first
subscribing to the publication when his sister Mary Anne was selling them for a
grade school fundraiser.
Whether it was his own kids, his nieces and nephews, his grandchildren or his
great-grandchildren Tom loved spending time with kids. He especially enjoyed
flying kites, carving pumpkins, dying easter eggs and giving rides in Melinda’s
1956 Willy’s Jeep, or his prized 1955 Ford Fairlane.
Tom is proceeded in death by his parents, Bob and Mary Maupin, brother Bud
Maupin, and a special nephew Levi Maupin.
He is his survived in life by his wife of 61 years, Delta, brother John (Renae)
Maupin of Crane, sister Mary Anne (Wess) Mace of Hines, sister-in-law, Mary
Maupin of Spokane, Washington daughters, Melinda (Bob Wocelka) Maupin of
Hines, Polly (Marc) O’Toole of Drewsey, son, Jeff (Erin) Maupin of Riley,
grandchildren, Emilee (Luke) McKay of Juntura, Thomas O’Toole of Durham,
North Carolina, John Patrick (Abbey) O’Toole of Drewsey, Sadie O’Toole of
Meridian, Idaho, Ian, Cade and Kassidy Maupin of Riley, and great-grandchildren,
Xavier and Blaise McKay of Juntura.
A funeral was held Saturday, April 15, at Pioneer Presbyterian Church followed by
a graveside service at the Drewsey Cemetery.
In leu of flower, donations can be made in Tom’s memory to The National Rifle
Association in care of La Follette’s Chapel, PO Box 488 Burns, OR 97720.

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