Wayne Douglas Patterson

Wayne Douglas Patterson passed away on October 13, 2026 in Salem, OR at the age of 88. Born on April 13, 1938, in Kearney, NE, to Ivan and Mildred Patterson, Wayne grew up in Scottsbluff, NE. He played first base, played trumpet in the band, and delivered newspapers before school. He also filled his father’s gas tank with sand, pole vaulted into an oil puddle, and rode his bike all over the county (he was a curious and energetic kid). The family moved to Bonners Ferry, ID in 1953 where he attended high school. Largely self-taught, he built his first house after school and on Saturdays. He rode a horse from Libby, MT to Bonners Ferry, played in a dance band, and rode his motorcycle all over the Idaho panhandle. 

Wayne met the love of his life, Janet Mace, in home room and they married in 1956, and spent almost 70 years together. Until she passed in 2025, they laughed about how she used that “exotic Nebraska boy” as arm candy. After she passed, he loved the procession of children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren who shared love, laughter, news, and old stories, but they couldn’t replace Janet. He missed her dearly. He fell in early October and declined quickly over several days. His son Scott, daughter Linda, and grandson Brian were with him in his last hours, and a family friend sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” as he passed to rejoin Janet. Dad’s life was one of family, hard work, duty, and responsibility. After marriage and high school graduation, he attended North Idaho College on scholarship for a couple of years and worked several jobs around northern Idaho. 

In 1958, he led his growing family to Nampa to help his parents and sister. Finding work in construction, they stayed in Nampa where he milked dairy cows before and after work to save money to start his own construction company. He built more than a hundred houses and developed several subdivisions over the next 35 years. Dad loved to hunt and fish, travel in the RV, explore, and visit family. He was fearless on a motorcycle, any kind of four-wheeled vehicle, boat, rooftop, or hillside. Many times, his sense of adventure led him to the edge of disaster, but he was ingenious at escaping a pickle. He retired after a boating accident wrecked his shoulders. After caring for his parents, he and Mom moved to Idaho Falls to be near most of their grandchildren. Those grandchildren left home, and after 20 years, he and Janet moved to Salem, OR. In Salem, they were near great-grandchildren and Scott, who helped him care for Janet as she struggled with dementia. 

Dad was active in the First Baptist Church in Nampa and First Methodist Church in Idaho Falls. He was generous with his time, coaching baseball, accompanying the church choir and several musical productions with his trumpet, ushering, maintaining church buildings and grounds, and delivering Meals on Wheels. He could seem hard until you saw him dancing in sparkly underwear (over his pajamas), posing with a silly hat, or feeding his grandchildren ice cream for breakfast. He never lost his sense of adventure or devotion to his family. Sibs – any comments or corrections would be appreciated. 

He is survived by his children Linda (Paul) Blauser, Cheryl (Don) Dalton, Mike (Karla) Patterson, and Scott (Sammie Mosely) Patterson; seven grandchildren, and 14 great grandchildren; and brother-in-law John (Sandy) Mace. He was preceded in death by his wife Janet, parents Ivan and Mildred Patterson, sister Gwen (Cleve) Gillogly, and sister-in-law Donna (Ken) Dinning. 

Graveside services with immediate family members will be held on November 6th at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens and a celebration of life will be held at 11:00 AM on November 7th at Yraguen Chapel, 415 12th Ave. S. in Nampa, ID. Special thanks are due to his son Scott for his care in the last several years. In lieu of flowers, Dad would have appreciated donations to The Parkinson's Foundation (https://The Parkinson's Foundation/).