George "Pete" Leroy Fields, Sr.

George LeRoy “Pete” Fields

Pete passed away peacefully at home Saturday morning, January 28, 2017. Born June 19, 1938 to Clifford Fields and Viola N. (Glascock) Fields, Pete was the third of six children. His wife, Joan L. (Webber) Fields, his parents and two sisters, Bonnie Bartlett and Thelma “Shorty” Spivey, preceded him in death. Two sisters, Shonna Gilbert and Sharon Burgess and his brother James “Rick” Fields and their spouses survive Pete. Pete also is survived by his two children, George L “Pete” Fields, Jr. (with his wife Julie and daughter Alexandra) and Shannon A. Brown (with her two children, Ava and Christopher).

Pete was born in Parma, Idaho and moved to Donnelly, Idaho with his family in 1940. The family moved to Alturas, CA for a couple of years then back to Lake Fork on a ranch then Donnelly again where he remained until his passing. Pete graduated from McCall-Donnelly High School in 1956. He lettered in football among other sports. He joined the Air Force with a childhood friend, Eddie McDowel. Stationed at Stead Air Force base in Reno, NV as a survival instructor, Pete taught men how survive for weeks across the dessert and in the Nevada Mountains in 20 plus feet of snow. He thought it was easier than living at home. He left the Air Force in 1961 after making several life-long friends including Eddie Hill, Don Plummer and others. They have many stories about the trouble they got into or caused and tails of their own survival. Pete stayed in Reno a few years working in a lumberyard and Ski Patrol at Heavenly Valley. He met his wife, Joni while living there and they moved back to Donnelly in 1964 where he worked for Brown Tie and Lumber as a logging truck driver. He did not care for that and found a job with Boise Cascade in McCall. Pete and Joni adopted their two kids in 1966 and 1967. He worked at the McCall saw mill until it closed, moving to Emmett until an opening in the Cascade saw mill allowed him to move back home. He took the position of Plant Manager in Council until that mill closed then back to Cascade until his retirement with Boise Cascade approx. 1994. He enjoyed the people and the job at Boise Cascade and had a gift for working with people. Pete enjoyed irritating his brother-in-law, boss and fishing partner, Ted Burgess, by falling asleep in company meetings and beating him in cribbage. He believed everyone wanted to do a good job if given the right tools and support. He did not put up with laziness or his pet peeve, being late! This is one time I wish my best friend would not have been so early!

A Memorial Service to celebrate Pete's life will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, February 4, 2017 in Mountain Life Church, McCall, Idaho.

Burial will be private and will be in the Holmes Cemetery, Donnelly, Idaho.