Dan C. Moore

Danny Dan Charles Moore, 83, of Eugene, Ore., died Aug. 10, 2011 at his home.

He was born Aug. 21, 1927 to Virgil Adolf and Effie May (Kennison) Moore in Portland, Ore. When he was six, his father died when the family home burned. He lived with his single mother and two of his three sisters in Portland and attended Emerson Grammar School, Vernon Grammar School, and Benson Poly Technic High.

At age 15, Dan misrepresented his birthday so he could join the U.S. Navy. He served as Motor Machinists Mate Third Class. After three years, he worked for American Bus Lines as garage foreman, then joined the U.S. Coast Guard and was stationed at Yaquina Bay in Newport.

In 1949, Dan married Alline Flanigan, a friend of his younger sister, Pearl. In 1950, his wife was pregnant, and he was transferred to remote Guard Island Light Station near Ketchikan, Alaska. His wife lived with his family until daughter Christine was born. On Dans next leave, he brought his wife and daughter up to live with him on the one-acre island, where they stayed for two years. He was an engineer and worked 12-hour shifts daily to keep the light shining and the foghorn blowing on schedule.

They moved to Monterey, Calif., and in 1955 welcomed another daughter, Janet. In 1956, they moved to San Lorenzo, and Dan served as recruiter for the USCG in San Francisco. They transferred to Hawaii in 1960, where he was Chief Engineman on a ship that went to Japan for two months every six months.

They were transferred to Oregon in 1962, and settled in Astoria. Dan was stationed at the Tongue Point Coast Guard Station as Senior Chief Engineman on the buoy tender Mallow until he retired in 1965. He ran the machine shop for Crown Zellerbach in Seaside for 17 years, and divorced in 1971.

In 1978, he married Jean Marie Reed, who also worked at Crown Z, and they bought a home in Seaside. Dan started collecting classic cars and punched the time-clock daily to work on them in his heated, six-car garage. His pride and joy was a 1936 Packard that he pieced together from the bodies of two cars. He also had a Jaguar XKE, 1957 Ford Retractable, Mercedes, Corvette, two Edsels and a dozen others.

They bought a motor home and began traveling. Eventually, they bought a second home in Sun City, Calif., and Dan and Jean became snowbirds for years. A few years back, they moved back to Oregon and settled in Eugene.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Virgil and Effie Moore; and sisters, Dorothy, Colleen and Pearl.

He is survived by his wife, Jean; two daughters, Christine (Bruce) Waugh and Janet (Rick) Diaz; grandsons, Nathan (Carolyn) Groome, Jared Groome and Bryan Diaz; many stepchildren; grandchildren; great-grandchildren; and nephews.

A memorial service was held Aug. 21, 2011 at the Pioneer Presbyterian Church in Warrenton, Ore.