Myra “June” Holtry Spearman entered the arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ on April 9, 2026 at the age of 99, surrounded by her family at her home of 73 years in Hermiston.
She was born on Oct. 25, 1926 in Howe, Idaho to Jette Camilla Wilde Holtry and Bembridge Franklin Holtry (she was born in their home) and was the fourth of six children.
The depression forced their family to move in the early ‘30s to Boulder City, Nev., where her father worked for a consortium called Six Companies building Boulder Dam, later to be renamed Hoover Dam.
In 1945-1946 they moved from their home in Boulder City, Nev. to Dayton, Wash. to a family logging business. Their son, Gordon Keith Spearman Jr., was born there in 1946.
In 1947 they moved back to Boulder City. Daughter Becky was born in 1948 in Boulder City. In 1949 they moved to Ordnance to work on McNary Dam. When McNary Dam was finished and The Dalles Dam was being built, Gordon was hired to work on this new project. Gordon traveled there each day to work and back, and June took care of everything at home. In 1950 another addition to the family, Wanda, was born in Pendleton. Shortly after, they moved to Stanfield for a brief time.
Gordon’s parents, Millard and Nina Spearman, had found acreage northeast of Hermiston on Locust Road. Gordon and June moved into a little four-room house just down the road from his parents in the spring of 1952. Their fourth child, daughter Beverly, was born in Pendleton.
In August 1954, Gordon was struck with polio. For medical reasons they had to move to Portland for his treatment. That was a really challenging time for the
family and June handled this very well. The family spent a few years in Portland while Gordon went through rehab.
In 1957, the family moved back to their home on Locust Road and with their family growing larger, they started adding onto their home. Even though Gordon was in a wheelchair after their return home from Portland, he and his main helper (June) built a great home for their family. In January 1959, another new arrival happened also; daughter Donna was born in Hermiston.
All of June’s school years were spent in Boulder City. Her eighth-grade graduation is where she met her future husband, Gordon Keith Spearman. His family had moved west seeking work on Boulder Dam as well. They dated through high school. Gordon graduated in June 1943 and enlisted in the Navy, and he and many of his high school buddies were on the same bus to boot camp by mid-July. Gordon was able to get a few days leave and on Sept. 13, 1944 he and his sweetheart got married. June became what was known as a war bride.
June was preceded in death by her husband of 53 years; son, Gordon Keith Sprearman Jr.; a daughter, Donna Lynn Badoux; a granddaughter, Katie Day Neely; as well as her parents and all of her siblings, Fern Davis, Vernon Holtry, Carman Cobb, Viola Adsit and Bembridge Holtry Jr.
Services were held on April 17, 2026.
Please share memories of June with her family at burnsmortuaryhermiston.com.
Burns Mortuary of Hermiston is in care of arrangements.
