(Obituary) Lahlee Duggins Knittle Morrell, age 83, of Grants Pass, passed away peacefully Saturday evening, February 28, 2009 at her home. She was born March 15, 1925 in Tulsa, Oklahoma to Louis Denzel Duggins and Quentine Juanita Alsup, the eldest of the six children of Louis and the three children of Quentine. She was raised in Tulsa where she studied dancing most of her childhood. As a young woman she was a dancer and taught dancing for a short while. She traveled with a few dance bands across the country while she was a member of the Milton Hill Dance Theater.
She met and fell in love with William Joseph Knittle, a talented trombone player while they both were with the Woody Wilson hotel traveling band. They were married in Tulsa on December 2, 1941, five days before Pearl Harbor. They traveled awhile longer with the band, but soon the traveling bands fell apart due to the War. They moved to Venice, California where Bill was able to find work building airplanes in nearby Santa Monica. They raised four children, three sons and one daughter. After 35 years of marriage, they were divorced. She later married Frank Morrell. She was employed by Sears, Roebuck & Co in Santa Monica, California as the manager of the Employees' Cafeteria for over 20 years. In 1999, after Frank died, she moved to Evanston, Wyoming to be close to her daughter and family. In 2004 she moved with her daughter and son-in-law to Grants Pass, Oregon.
She was raised Christian Scientist but converted to Catholicism as an adult. She enjoyed spending time with her family, especially her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She loved animals, sewing, knitting, crocheting, cooking, baking, collecting recipes, traveling and camping. She was an avid reader and often read an entire book in a day.
Survivors include her four children, Raymond George Knittle of Chatsworth, California, William Joseph Knittle Jr of Los Angeles, California, Susan Quentine Hunter and her husband Calvin of Grants Pass, Oregon; and Richard Michael Knittle and his wife Ann of Springtown, Texas; five siblings, Jackie, Jeanette, Frances, Nedra and William; 13 grandchildren; 23 great-grandchildren; and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, in-law, and friends who will miss her greatly.
She was preceded in death by her husbands; her parents; a sister, Barbara; and a granddaughter, Sandra.