Merrill and Mae Taylor, longtime residents of Carey, Idaho, have joined one another in eternity with our Lord Jesus. Merrill Eugene Taylor was born in 1916, son of Earl and Fannie Taylor. He is survived by one brother, Joe Taylor, of Colorado Springs, Colo. He was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and two sisters and one half brother. Mae Christine Taylor was born in Kansas in 1905, daughter of Perry and Daisy Warner. She is survived by one sister, Cecil Ahlstedt, of Colorado Springs, Colo. She was preceded in death by her parents, five sisters and one brother.
Mae is also survived by two sons from her first marriage to Roy Tipton—Gene Tipton of Littleton, Colo., and Dan Tipton of South Portland, Maine; and five grandchildren, Jerry of South Portland, Maine, Diane of Boise, Idaho, Mike of Denver, Colo., Roy of Craig, Colo., and Daniel of Brighton, Colo.; five great-grandchildren, Jason Bruzewski of Boise, Jenn Baird of Lee's Summit, Mo., Mark Tipton of Portland, Maine, Jordan Tipton of Brighton, Colo., Taylor Tipton of Craig, Colo., and one great-great-granddaughter, Althea Bruzewski of Boise.
Merrill is also survived by nephews Stan Lieshner of Wichita Falls, Texas, Bill Wright of Walsh, Colo., and Earl Taylor of Ft. Pierce, Fla.; and by nieces Kathy Machotka of Garden City Kan., Karen Henderson of Denver, Jewel Meyer of Colorado Springs, Colo., Jolene Taylor of Brighton, Colo., and Beverly White of Redland, Calif.
After his parents moved to Colorado in 1938, Merrill joined the Marines in December 1941 after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He fought at Guadalcanal and other Pacific Islands and served in occupied Japan with the 1st Marine Company B as a reservist. He was called up for the Korean Conflict in 1951 to instruct the Tank Division in the 9th Marine Reserve District. He retired as a sergeant.
Mae Taylor moved to Denver and owned a bakery with her husband, Roy Tipton, and raised their two sons, Gene and Dan and a stepdaughter, Marjorie. After Roy's death in 1948, she bought a farm in Yoder, Colo. There she met Merrill Taylor.
Merrill and Mae joined each other in marriage in 1956. They farmed in Colorado for 17 years before moving to Carey in 1973. They enjoyed over 52 years of loving and caring for one another in good times and bad. They decided to move to Idaho where the water was plentiful and fishing superior. They introduced Black Angus cattle to the valley and raised the best beef anywhere until they retired in the 1980s. They traveled extensively in the U. S. and snowbirded in Yuma, Ariz., during the bitter cold Carey winters. They eventually moved to Boise to be closer to family and services. They enjoyed almost daily visits from their great-great-granddaughter Althea, who was born shortly before their arrival in Boise.
People fondly remember Merrill as a most generous and friendly person, a guy who could fix anything. As people remember Mae and her 104 years of life, many have said she lived so long because of her agreeable personality and optimistic acceptance of whatever trials might be presented. They were both experts in the sport of fishing.
For all the family, friends and acquaintances, there will be a memorial at the bluff on their farm in Carey on Wood River Road. Family and friends will meet near their farm at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug 26, and travel up to the highest point to remember them in a brief ceremony. A reception will follow at Carey City Hall at 4 p.m. It is a potluck, so bring your favorite food to share if you can. If memorials are given, the family requests they go to your favorite charity in lieu of flowers.
