George Benhard Nichols Obituary (1939 - 2009)

Born Oct 09, 1939, George Benhard Nichols attended Salmon High School in Salmon, ID. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about George Benhard Nichols.

Graduation Year	Class of 1958
Date of Birth	Oct 09, 1939
Date of Passing	Jun 18, 2009
About	George Nichols passed away about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 18, 2009, at the Missoula Community Hospital. George's request was not having a funeral or a burial. He is being cremated and Karl Nichols, his son, will take his ashes to the foothills north of Salmon to the area Annual Model Airplane Fly-in's are held every year, one of George's favorite pastimes. The family requests in lieu of flowers donations be made to the Salmon Volunteer Fire Department, the Presbyterian Church Building Fund, or your favorite charity. George was airlifted to Missoula by helicopter in the afternoon of June 17th. He had been requiring emergency care numerous times in the last two months. George had been diagnosed with Lymphoma cancer and underwent chemo treatment which caused problems with his gall bladder, kidneys, and liver. The cancer was finally put into remission, but caused damage to his liver and kidneys which eventually contributed to his death. The last few months, his liver and kidneys were causing his body to retain water. As much as fifty pounds in fluid were drained from his body over the last month. George was born October 9, 1939, in Salmon, Idaho, son of Mary (Dillon) and Leslie Nichols. He graduated with the class of 1958, and married Bonavere Tracy on January 10, 1959. They celebrated their 50th anniversary this past January. They have three children, two daughters (Debora Kay and Dora Kathleen) and one son (Karl Brian). In high school, George belonged to the Boy Scouts and Explorer Scouts with meetings in the Methodist Church. Many backwoods camping trips were made by George and his friends. He and I would hike into some old mine and camp out for the night, always having a great time. George and Bonavere spent their first summer on Jureano Lookout in the Salmon National Forest. He worked for the US Forest Service until the summer of 1965. At this time, their family had grown and George needed to find better employment. He was employed with the County of Custer as a Deputy Sheriff and Deputy State Brand Inspector until the spring of 1967. They moved back to Salmon and worked for the US Forest Service for that summer and in September was hired as a Deputy Sheriff for Bill Baker. George noted it was an interesting job, but not good for family life. George began his life-time employment with Lemhi Telephone Co. the spring of 1970. Lemhi Telephone was sold to Century Telephone Company based in Louisiana and George continued working for this company until retirement. George retired with a medical disability due to some knee injuries which made it difficult for him to do the work. His retirement was in 1998, just one month shy of his 29 year anniversary with the company. His work was mostly outside doing installation and repair work, which included installing new rural lines, as part of the system was from the original railroad era. George lived in Salmon at the same address from 1959 until his death. George loved building RC model airplanes and reading historical and local history books. In the past years, he has also taken up rock collecting, photography, and 4-wheeling. He was a coordinator for the Annual Salmon Fly-in, where model airplanes enthusiasts came from many states. He was the President of the 'Salmon Radio Control Fliers' club. George had a new garage built last summer for his rock cutting and polishing equipment. George also had a shed built specifically for his model airplanes. Every day, George would send e-mails with either funny jokes or with the conservative opinion stances he believed in. Often he would include photos he took from his outing ventures of rock hunting or just enjoying the back country
Events	George Benhard Nichols Birth:Monday, October 09, 1939 Salmon, Lemhi County, Idaho Death:Thursday, June 18, 2009 Missoula, Missoula County, Montana Age:69 yrs • 8 mo Memorial ID: 193608168 Married:Saturday, January 10, 1959 50 yrs • 5 mo Last Address: Salmon, Lemhi County, Idaho 83467-4724 Burial:Ashes Spread @ Annual Model Airplane Fly-in Area • Salmon, Lemhi County, Idaho Cause:Lymphoma Cancer • Liver Failure