Dad loved stories, and if you didn’t have one to tell him, he was always glad to share one of his own. Our father, Lennis Orville Allen, passed away on June 3, early in the morning—always getting on with business first thing. He enjoyed life, often saying that any day he woke up was a good one. He had so many stories because he was fully engaged in all that life and his fellow man had to offer and put in the hard work necessary to make things happen.
He was a surveyor, a Marine, a teacher, a mover and shaker for Centralia Little League and the Morton Historical Society, a quarter horse breeder, and most of all, a loving husband and father. He raised children with his first wife, Barbara Carnahan Allen; he raised horses, other animals, a garden, children, and grandchildren with his second wife, Marlene Atkinson Allen; and he raised heck dancing with his partner, Leila Beals—all of whom preceded him in death.
His children Bruce, Susan, Brian, and Nora Allen never had a sporting event where Lennis wasn’t in the stands hollering at the refs. When sons Curt and Walt Atkinson entered his life, he encouraged and supported their continued education and loved them as his own.
A proud son of Leonard “Bud” Allen and Viola “Vi” Allen, he graduated from Morton High School. After working as a survey assistant for Kosmos Timber, he joined the Marines and served in the Korean War. He later attended Central Washington State College, earning a bachelor’s degree in education in 1961, followed by teaching certification and a master’s degree in education in 1969.
He moved his family to Centralia, where he taught at both the junior and senior high schools, retiring in 1989. While there, he was active in the Jaycees and Centralia Baseball, and chaired the Math and Science Department at CHS. He built and ran the Cinebar Star Quarter Horse Ranch with Marlene before retiring once again to Morton—with fewer horses and a dog or two. He was instrumental in leading the Morton Historical Society in moving and refurbishing the train depot, and in keeping Morton beautiful with hanging plants downtown alongside Marlene.
He enjoyed dancing and chatting with friends and neighbors at the Morton Senior Center and spent his final years living comfortably and well cared for at Heritage House, often taken for a ride and lunch by family and friends.
Besides his children, he is survived by his sisters, Darline Locati and Lenore Kromm; grandchildren, Rachael Allen, Craig Allen, Rosie Allen Bucknovitz, Evan Allen Rowe, Sarah Allen Bucknovitz, and Shelby Muir; and great-grandchildren, Leonard Allen King, Braelyn Monroe Muir, Bristol Ellie Muir, and Jaxon Johnson. He was preceded in death by his son Walt Atkinson and granddaughter Darian Atkinson.
A graveside service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 21, at Morton Cemetery, corner of Seventh and Westlake. A celebration of life will follow at 12 p.m. at the Bob Lyle Community Center, 700 Main St., Morton, Washington.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in his name to the Darian Atkinson Memorial Scholarship, c/o White Pass Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 495, Randle, WA 98377.
