Clayton Allen was born May 29, 1917, in Buhl, ID, (in a tent during a raging storm,) and he died November 5, 2010. His wife of 67 years, Vila Thygeson Allen preceded him in death. He is survived by his daughter, Barbara Allen Huston; two grandsons, Todd and Jeff Huston; and four great-grandchildren, Carly, Susannah, Joe and Dylan.

Clayton first lived in Rickreall, OR and later, in Salem, OR. As a teenager, he would work at what farm labor he could find, till he saved up some money to hop a train to San Francisco, out to discover the wonders of the world. When he ran out of money, he would again hop a train home, only to repeat his adventures. From Salem, he moved to Portland, OR to drive a bakery sales route. He married Vila Thygeson in Vancouver, WA on Christmas Eve, 1941. His daughter, Barbara, was born during WWII, while he was repairing Navy war-ships at the Bremerton shipyards. They moved to Wenatchee when the War ended. He was very successful in Real Estate. After "retiring," he invested in many properties, built several homes, subdivided properties and rentable houses, always having a project in the works. He loved the difficult or impossible, purposely seeking out properties that others thought unworkable. He built a home on many acres on what is now known as Skyline Drive. The City proposed "Allen Drive" but he insisted on Skyline Drive. Clayton lived an adventurous outdoor life. After retiring, he canoed in the Wilderness areas, 1000 miles on the Yukon River, as well as 500 miles in a ten day Mackenzie River canoe trip. And then a very exciting dirt bike trip with Ken Olson from the California border down the entire Baja peninsula, camping all the way. He also kayaked in the Ridge-to-River race several times, into his 80's. He truly enjoyed "roughing it," being with horses, camping, fishing, hiking, or anything else he could concoct. For 73 years, he was very active in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church and also in the support of the Worldwide SDA Church Missions. This summer, he was working ten hours a day on his latest building project and only backed off because he had to. After never being ill a day in his 93-1/2 years, Mesothelioma was the one foe he could not conquer.

Funeral Arrangements are planned for Monday, November 15, 2010, at 2:00 p.m., at the Wenatchee Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Fifth and Western Avenue. Interment will be at the Evergreen Memorial Park in East Wenatchee following the service. In lieu of flowers, gifts to Dr. Ron Fleck's Second Hope Ministries www.secondhopeministries.org (509-240-5054) are encouraged. Please express your thoughts and memories on the online guest book at jonesjonesbetts.com. Arrangements have been entrusted to Jones & Jones~Betts Funeral Home, Wenatchee.