Vyonda Riddle

Vyonda June Rice Riddle, 91, our beautiful mother (Honey Mama) died Nov. 9, 2016, in Mountain Home.

Born June 23, 1925, at St. Luke's Hospital in Boise to Margaret Wagoner Rice and Virgil Rice, she had two sisters, Lois and Virginia, and a brother, Robert. She spent her childhood in Southern Idaho attending Twin Falls High School through her Sophomore year. When her parents divorced, she acquired a wonderful stepfather, George Peck, and four step-siblings.

At the outbreak of World War II, the family relocated to Bremerton, Wash., to join the war effort. Mother graduated from Bremerton High School in 1943.

Our father had also gone from Boise to Bremerton, where he eventually joined the Navy. We teased our parents often that a handsome guy from Idaho had to go all the way to Washington to find and marry a cute Idaho gal! They married on Dec. 25, 1942, in Seattle, and their first daughter, Toni was born in Bremerton in 1944.

After Dad was discharged, they moved back to Idaho to the family ranch in Riddle. Mother soon loved the smell of sage and alfalfa, the high desert of beautiful Owyhee County, the sounds of Hereford cattle and her sorrel gelding she named "Sailor Boy" that her father in-law, Earl Riddle, gave her.

Mom and Dad established their winter home in Mountain Home in 1950, and the family grew with the births of Lynn, Susan and Marcy. They continued to spend summers and many holidays at the ranch.

After the sale of the ranch, they permanently moved to Mountain Home, where mother created a beautifully warm and loving home for Dad and their four "little women." They made wonderful life-long friends, and both mother and dad joined in many clubs and organizations. They enjoyed traveling to Hawaii, Canada, Alaska, many states and of course, often to famous Jackpot, Nev.!

Mother's greatest achievements and passions, other than her family, were the vast amounts of art she produced. She dabbled in practically every media, her most famous being her "Little People." A fabulous designer and seamstress, she could whip up a prom formal overnight!

Creativity and the love of all things beautiful filled her soul with joy. Christmas was her favorite season, and we will miss her beautiful decorations.

She was preceded in death by her husband, M.A. "Bud" Riddle, her parents, her siblings, and her daughter, Lynn. She is survived by her daughters, Toni (Robert DeShazo), Susan (Jan Johnson) and Marcy (Dick) Crockett, eight grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, many extended family members and her loving canine companion, "Little Buddy."

The family wishes to thank all who helped us care for mother during the past few weeks, especially the angels at Treasure Valley Hospice and Destiny's Doors, who came day or night with such loving care and compassion just when we needed it the most and to Rost Funeral Home. We couldn't have done it without all of you.

Per mother's request, the family will have a funeral service at 1 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 18, 2016, at Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel, followed by a graveside service at Mountain View Cemetery in Mountain Home.