Col. USAR (retired) Jesse Lyndel Herndon After living a life of service, Col. USAR (retired) Jesse Lyndel "Corny" Herndon passed away peacefully of natural causes with his children by his side in Meridian, Idaho on April 1, 2023 Jesse was born in Scotts Bluff, Nebraska on September 19, 1929. Scotts Bluff was the closest hospital to Torrington,WY where the family lived. Jesse's father, Jesse Hoyt Herndon, was a father of four little girls under the age of seven when his first wife died in the Spanish Flu epidemic in 1920. In 1927 Hesse Hoyt married Anna Frances Huff, a "spinster" schoolteacher. Jesse Lyndel was the only child of this marriage. When Jesse Lyndel was seven the family, minus the girls whom were now young women, settled in the Treasure Valley of Idaho. They lived in various homes in Payette and Fruitland. Young Jesse attended and graduated from Fruitland High School in 1947. His mother had taught school in Fruitland for many years prior. Apparently, it was common in the day for the teens to all have nicknames. Dad's nickname stuck, he will forever be known as "Corny", at least to those who knew him in Payette. One of Dad's earliest jobs was delivering oil for long gone Roy Miller Oil Company in Payette. It was while working at Hannigan Chevrolet in Payette that he and AnnaBelle Robinson got married in 1948. They had three children, Steven Lyn in 1949 (deceased 2015), Rob (Roby) Lee in 1956, and Teri Anna in 1963. Each born seven years apart (mom's favorite number was seven). Jesse joined the National Guard in Payette with his good friend Renne Barrie in 1948. While at the rank of Captain he was Troop Commander of Guard at the Weiser armory, and later Battery Commander in Payette. After retiring from the guard, he joined the Army Reserves. He spent many summers at the Univ. of Nevada in Reno as the Liaison Officer for the Command and General Staff when the Army would rent areas of the University for military classes. His extensive military training provided him a master's level education. He retired form the Army Reserves in 1989 with the rank of Colonel. In 1960, dad started working as a letter carrier for the United States Postal Service in Payette. He became rather famous in Payette known as the "whistling mailman". When the boys were young dad was involved in many youth activities including boy scouts, little league baseball and volunteered as a Sunday school teacher at the Payette Methodist church. In addition to working the two jobs, military and postal, Corny was a fireman for the all-volunteer fire department in Payette. In those days, fireman would be notified via home telephone by a distinctive ring with a person on the other end giving the address and description of the fire. Off he would go, often racing to a fire in AnnaBelle's Ford Mustang. In addition to his jobs and volunteering, Corny's most favorite activity was spending many hours with his skilled bird dog chukar hunting. He and his best friends Tobe and Cliff Massingill, and Ralph Crawford, just to name a few, spent chukar season hiking up and down the hills in Hell's Canyon or up Little Willow with their faithful dogs. Sons Steve and Rob learned their hunting and marksmanship skills from their father by occasionally spending time with him on these weekend treks. In 1976, Corny, AnnaBelle and Teri relocated to Meridian to be closer to Boise for AnnaBelle's medical treatment. He worked as a letter carrier and later Assistant Postmaster in Meridian. Keeping with his volunteering spirit, dad served as the area fund raising coordinator for the new Mountain States Tumor Institute (MISTI) during AnnaBelle's illness. AnnaBelle died in 1980 after 32 years of marriage. It was while working in Meridian that Jesse met Alice Dawna Holladay, they married in 1981. With this union Jesse gained six more (adult) children (Dale, Janene, Don, Jo Lyn, Doug, and Jill). Dawna also worked for the Meridian Post Office. By the time they had retired from the Postal Service, Corny was back in Payette serving as Postmaster, Dawna had served as Postmaster in Parma, and son Rob was Postmaster in Homedale. He and Dawna both retired in 1996 and moved to Georgia for a few years to assist with one of the kids' businesses. They then moved back to the Boise area to be closer to their beloved Boise State athletic teams. You couldn't find more avid fans than Jesse and Dawna. They were BSU season ticket holders and travelled all over the country to attend football and basketball games. They loved to travel, and when they weren't on the road with the Broncos, they were visiting their children and grandchildren. Jesse loved each of Dawna's children as his own. He was very proud of each grandchild and was always interested in what was going on in their lives. Dawna passed away in 2014 after another loving marriage of 33 years for dad. He had been an amazing and loving caregiver during the long illnesses of both wives. At the time of his death, he was a 65-year member of Elks Lodge #1690 in Ontario, OR. Dad was preceded in death by his two wives, AnnaBelle and Dawna, and his son Steven. He is survived by his son Rob (Jami) of Star, Idaho, his daughter, Teri Feider (Robert) of Castle Rock, CO. Janene (Sid) Holladay, Don Holladay, Jo Lyn Holladay, Doug (Judy) Holladay, and Jill Holladay Kindall. Grandchildren Anne Lowe, Jesse Herndon, James Herndon, Jodi Herndon, Annabel Feider, Clara Feider, TJ Herndon, and many step grandchildren and great grandchildren of which he loved each one of them. Jesse Lyndel "Corny" Herndon was a great example of a life well lived in addition to being well loved. He quietly made a difference in many lives. Funeral services will be held at 11 AM, Monday, April 10 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 927 Ruth Lane, Nampa, ID, with a viewing from 9:30-10:30 AM prior to the services. Services under the direction of Zeyer Funeral Chapel, 208-467-7300.
Add comment