Farewell Big Port... we'll miss you

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Timmy and Big Port, 1983 Washoe - Payette, ID
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Reunited again July 3, 2008, "in Heaven"

Timothy R Smith 8-2-75 / 8-31-01 ~ Porter A Willis 2-26-23 / 7-3-08

Porter A. Willis, Sr. aka Big Port, Port Sr, Port, Porter passed away yesterday, July 3rd after a valiant 5-6 week fight to recover from a quadruple bypass heart surgery and complications. He was a dear friend and mentor, and the only grandfather my sons, Tim and Eric "really knew". He is the one person in my life most responsible for my foundation in cowhorse - cowboy - cow knowledge.

Seeing this pic of Tim and Big Port after I uploaded it was kind of surreal...

Here I was - happy go lucky sorting through pics of Big Port that were already in digital format on my computer, putting them in folder, uploading them... and then started to write my thoughts. I had just written the title Farewell Big Port and then scrolled down to the first picture... which was the pic of Tim, Big Port and the tractor and I had the realization and visualization for the first time that for Tim, it wasn't Farewell, but "Hello Big Port" and of him greeting Big Port in Heaven...

Branding at Garden Valley, ID

Big Port is roping on Eldebeast, who ended up being sold in Germany.

Tim is carrying the bucket to collect the Rocky Mountain Oysters.

Big Port at Willow Springs, making sure the four wheeler doesn't get away...

Shipping day at the Buckeye Ranch, Tracy, CA

Port and Averyel weigh and tally the steers across the scales.

.The Willis' took me in back in 1980 when Port and Averyel were living on the Oregon Slope and running cattle on the Washoe and son Porter Lynn and Larryann were ranching at Vale, OR... I have been an extended part of their family ever since. In recent years Porter Lynn and wife LarryAnn have been managing the Buckeye Ranch, I'm thinking 10 or 12 years. Big Port and Averyel have their own place there on the Buckeye too. In 1999, I began a tradition of going down to the Buckeye for the Memorial Day weekend to help Port and Larryann, who manage it, gather the yearlings for shipping. Most years my best friends Cindy Jones and Laurie Kemp who both used to live in Burns, OR go down with me. They both had moved away from Burns, Cindi to Portland, and Laurie to LaGrande, (opposite sides of the State) so the trip become our working mini vacation to get together and see each other. As well as spend time with Big Port and Averyel and Port and Larryann. Our Memorial Day visits are always memorable.

Waiting on the trucks to ship the Buckeye cattle.

Laurie, Cindi, (my girlfriends from Oregon) Greg Kent (ranch owner) and Big Port

Big Port and I at Kelly Flat Trap

It's about half way between Willow Springs (the gathering spot for the upper fields) and the shipping corrals at the Headquarters where Porter and Larryann and Big Port and Averyel live. There's a spring fed trough for the cattle to water at and we, (specially the ones of us who have other day jobs) enjoy using the rest stop to air our horses backs ;o)

Goodbye pictures at the end of another fun Memorial Day weekend Buckeye gather.

Me (Cyndy), Big Port, and Laurie Kemp - May 2006

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The Porter A. Willis Family 2006

Celebrating Porter and Averyel's 60th Wedding Anniversary

Rob, Alan, Dean, Averyel, Porter, Marilee, and Porter Lynn

Port and Averyel, my living room Burns, Oregon

I think this was when they came to look after me, after my neck surgery... Porter and I enjoyed watching a lot MBL baseball that trip. Over the years he always teased me about my Red Sox and he pretended to be a Yankee fan to get my goat. In 2004, during the AL East Pennant race, the Sox were getting pummeled by the Yanks, the series was 3-0 Yanks and the Yanks were in the process of winning game 4 and Big Port called me during the game... He mentioned the game in progress, and I announced vehemently, We will NOT talk baseball !!! He obliged, and we chatted about other things. After we hung up history was about to be made... Game 4, the Sox were down by one run in the 9th inning, tied it and went 12 innings until Red Sox slugger Big Papi (David Ortiz) hit a 2 run walk off home run ... the Sox truely "Cowboyed Up" and won the last four games to beat the Yankees and win the ALCS Pennant. They went on to sweep/beat St. Louis in the World Series and win their first Championship in 86 years. After the last pitch of the 2004 World Series winning game... (I had watched at home alone, too pessimistic to believe they would actually win) I was sobbing in unbelief watching the celebration on the field... thinking about all the die hard Sox fans who had died, and had not been able to see them win a World Series... particularly my mother who slept with a transistor radio under her pillow listening to all the games. Big Port waited 15 minutes after the last pitch... and then telephoned me and his opening words were " "well Cyndy girl, can we talk baseball now ? Of course we couldn't because I was sobbing again. ;o)

The rest of the Cyndy and Willis Family story:

read From Cape Cod girl to Eastern Oregon Woman - on the Porter A Willis blog.

I originally wrote about my memorable journey from Cape Cod beaches to Eastern Oregon rancher here. It told how I went from being raised on Cape Cod to becoming a capable rancher in Eastern Oregon via meeting, living with and being trained by the Willis family.

After a bit of writing, it occured to me that the story really belonged in the Porter Willis blog, and it made sense for me to move it all over to that one. So if you are interested to read about my (cyndy marshall) evolution from Cape Cod beach girl to Eastern OR cowboy click on this link:

http://porterawillispw.blogspot.com/2008/07/how-willis-met-cyndy-tim-eric.html