David Wayne Denton of Heppner passed away peacefully at home on June 15, 2025 at the age of 75. He was a devoted husband, father, and friend, known for his strength, kindness, and being a realist with a great sense of humor.
The Dentons moved to Kinzua in 1946, and David was born on Aug. 7, 1949 to Frank D. Denton and Dena Bethene Swanson in Walla Walla, Wash.
David attended grade school at Kinzua, where he felt fortunate to be raised in God’s country within the Kinzua community and all it offered. He laughed often about his favorites: climbing Castle Rock; stinging nettles sword fights; one day his dad was rolling into town on the railroad and the crew was laughing while watching a large tire rolling off the hill at a high rate of speed, bouncing high and finally landing at the bottom hitting a car, until Dad realized his two boys had rolled the tire; kids all over town loading up in M. Boring’s station wagon heading to Boy Scout activities; playing baseball; swimming at the mill ponds or Condon’s pool; golfing and being disqualified after winning the father-daughter golf tournament; fishing; and Dave loved hunting, whether it was squirrels, deer or elk, or just plunking cans; his eighth-grade class consisting of three girls and seven boys versus Brookings’ freshman class of 90. A lifetime of memories.
The family moved to Brookings, where Dave excelled as a catcher in baseball and enjoyed track and basketball, graduating from Brookings High School.
David served in the U.S. Army 1968-1970, 62nd Artillery Division, stationed at Rhein-Main, Frankfurt, Germany as a Hawk missile fire control operator and automatic weapons repair counter-insurgency division. He was the recipient of the National Defense Service and Good Conduct medals and was honorably discharged as SPE4.
He spent eight years at Brookings Plywood in all facets of production and was self-motivated to learn boiler operations. He moved to Heppner for employment with Kinzua Corporation for 18 years as a boiler operator for production of electricity to the plant and steam drying lumber products. He was promoted to head operator of the new co-generation 10-mega-watt turbine-steam generator for production of electricity for Kinzua Corporation and PGE – all phases of production, repair, training and compliance reporting. With the closure of Kinzua Corp., David’s journey led him to Roseburg Forest Products as a senior operator of five steam turbines/three boilers generation of electricity, fired by gas, sander dust and waste oil. His experience was utilized in the startup of satellite plants at Weed, Calif. and Riddle. He went to work for the Oregon Department of Corrections as a boiler operator in Wilsonville. With desires to return to Eastern Oregon, he transferred to the Department of Corrections security department for the startup of the newly constructed prison at Umatilla in the security department for 11 years and retired early.
David received the Harrison Hale Award and umpired Babe Ruth, American Legion seven years and high school baseball. He was a lifetime member of Heppner Elks Lodge #358, NRA, Regional Boiler Association with a second-class engineering license, Kinzua safety committee, and team leader of ODOC class #142.
Remaining to cherish David’s memory are his wife of 44 years, Terri; two children, Tandi Schatz (Shane) of Harrisburg and David Denton Jr. (Kari) of Shoreline, Wash.; six grandchildren, Danial, Emmaleigh, Zackary, Gretta, Jim and Ruby; three great-grandchildren; and his brother, Verlin Denton (Andrea) of Pendleton.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Bethene Denton, and several aunts and uncles.
No services will be held.
The family asks that donations to Heppner Elks #358 Oregon Children’s Charitable Department or Pioneer Memorial Hospice, both of Heppner, be made instead of flowers or other gifts.
Please leave your condolences for the family online.
Sweeney Payton Mortuary has been entrusted with the arrangements.
