Hazel Irene West

Hazel Irene West of Payson, Arizona, died in Snowflake on November 16, 2012 at the age of 93. She was born in Boone, Boone County, Iowa on June 28, 1919, the oldest of seven children born to the late Lloyd and Florence Kern. Her family later moved to Hobbs, New Mexico where she met and married Fred West, a marriage that would last 61 years. Two sons were born in Hobbs and, when the youngest was a one year old, they relocated to Clifton, Arizona where she became a telephone operator for Mountain Bell; a career that would span 29 years, until her retirement in Phoenix in 1981. After she retired, she and Fred moved to Payson, Arizona where they would spend their remaining years. After her husband's passing, Hazel began to involve herself in various charities; something of which she was very proud. She participated in candlelight walks to benefit cancer research, and loved to tell people that she was the oldest person in the group. She also volunteered for 13 years at Time Out in Payson and received numerous awards for her service there. Perhaps her proudest accomplishment was making baby booties and caps for the Layette Program of the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society which presented her with a Certificate of Appreciation at a ceremony in San Diego, California in 2006. After her health began to decline she moved to an assisted living facility in Snowflake, Arizona where she was living at the time of her death. In addition to her parents and husband, Hazel was preceded in death by four brothers. She is survived by her sons, Fred (Tony) West of Snowflake, Arizona, Bob (Rose) West of Safford, Arizona; 7 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; 2 great-great-grandchildren and 2 sisters. The funeral service will begin 11:00 A.M., Saturday, November 24, 2012 at Owens Livingston Mortuary - Heritage Chapel, 84 E. 19th South in Snowflake, Arizona where the visitation will begin 1 hour prior. The concluding service and interment will immediately follow at at the R.V. "Mike" Ramsay Memorial Cemetery in Snowflake.