- Date Of Birth: July 27, 1927
- Date Of Death: December 19, 2008
- State: Idaho
Illis “Irene” Schaffer, 81, of Boise, passed into the arms of her loving Heavenly Father on Friday, December 19, 2008.
Irene was born on July 27, 1927 to Byron and Vera Folwell in Kuna, Idaho. She grew up on a farm and had an idyllic childhood which she always remembered fondly with parents who adored her and her best friends, older brother “Bud” and cousin Floyd.
When Irene was 12 her father died and Irene moved with her mother to Boise where they bought and ran a boarding house in Boise‘s north end. She attended North Junior High School and BoiseHigh School. During her school days she loved dancing and often told of the fun she had at the USO dances. She often dreamed of living in one of the beautiful homes on Harrison Boulevard. She worked as a page at the old Ada Theatre (now the Egyptian) where she recounted “listening” to her favorite movie of all time “Gone with Wind” dozens of times because pages couldn’t watch the films while working. She would cluck her tongue, shake her head and get a dreamy look on her face when talking about “that handsome Clark Gable.”
After high school she attended Link’s School of Business where she learned to be a stenographer and bookkeeper. She worked as a bookkeeper most of her life and retired from El Ada Community Action Agency.
She married Rupert L. Terry and had two daughters Linda Sue Terry (Johnston) and Susan Lynn Terry. Rupert and Irene divorced and she lived with her mother, raised her two daughters, and worked a full time job, while her mother stayed home with the girls.
In 1969, Irene married Louis (Louie) K. Schaffer, and she and Louie bought the home of her dreams on Harrison Boulevard, where she lived until 1994 after Louie’s death in 1992.
Irene will be remembered for her bold wit, her wild stories, marvelous sense of humor and love of all things beautiful and sparkly. She was much loved and we all miss her terribly already, but are comforted that we will spend eternity with her as she claimed Jesus as her Savior in her last days.
Irene’s family meant more to her than anything and she dearly loved her parents, brothers, cousins, step-brothers, step-sister and especially her children, including her step-daughter, Judy Vaughn, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents; step-father, Bernie Waitley; husband, Louie Schaffer; brothers, Weldon “ Bud”, Kayle and Joseph Folwell; step-brothers, Charles and Kenneth Waitley
Irene is survived by daughters, Linda Sue Johnston (Guy), Susan Lynn Terry (Craig Ford), and Judy Vaughn; eight grandchildren, April Arbon (Jeremy), Jenness Johnston-Cosinga, Leah Ivie (Justin), James Johnston (Cassandra), Vera Martin (Ross), Zeb Terry, Dana Miller and Jeff Vaughn; great-grandchildren, Abigail and Micah Arbon, Joseph, Carson, and Jacob Ivie, Lily Johnston, William and Autumn Martin., Sunday Vaughn, Darby and Dakota Miller; dear friend, Wanda Borup; and cousin Floyd Folwell.
