Obituary of Virginia Jane Klein

Virginia Jane Klein October 5, 1921 – October 20, 2011 Virginia Klein died peacefully in Portland, Oregon in the presence of family, succumbing to cancer diagnosed just six weeks earlier. Born in Medford, Oregon to Ruth and Albert Forgey, she was the second of three children. Mildred is her older sister and Dorothy, her younger sister. Virginia grew up in Portland and Vancouver, Washington. She graduated from Battle Ground High School, the first member of her family to do so. Virginia became a skilled secretary and her expertise was sought out at the Kaiser shipyards during World War II. While at Kaiser, she met and married her first husband, George Harbert. At the end of the war, they were transferred to the Midwest, where George was head engineer with the automobile division of the Kaiser Corporation. Their two daughters, Kristin and Melissa, were born there. George and Virginia separated and divorced after he moved with the Kaiser auto division to Argentina. In 1960, Virginia returned to the west with her two daughters and settled in Beaverton to live near her beloved family. She joined Bethel Congregational Church where her sister, Mildred and husband, Donald worshiped. There she met John Henry Klein, a widower with three children. They married in 1962 and together with a blended family of five children, resided in Portland. John was a homebuilder and developer with until his retirement. Virginia was an active member of Bethel Church for over 50 years, finding both spiritual and social nurturance attending services, participating in study groups, providing leadership and assisting others in their spiritual journey. An ecumenical thinker, Virginia studied the commonalities in a variety of religious traditions, promoting tolerance and appreciation of the richness of different beliefs. Virginia loved to travel, visiting countries in Western Europe many times. She also traveled to the Holy Land, Egypt, and Mexico. She had an affinity for other cultures, studying French and cooking, teaching English as a second language, belonging to the Japanese/American friendship group, Tomodachi-Kai, and sponsoring schools built in India. Virginia is survived by her husband of nearly 50 years, John, her five grown children Catherine Knox, Kristin Hamon, Ken Klein, Melissa Harbert, and Peter Klein; by her six grandchildren Kennan and David Hamon, Christopher and Vivian Harbert-Erceg, and Mary and Beau Klein; and by her first great-grandchild, Anatole Aubrey. Virginia is also survived by her elder sister, Mildred Fernquist. Virginia was preceded in death by her parents and her younger sister, Dorothy Adams. A memorial service will be held on Sunday, October 30 at 2 PM at Bethel Congregational Church, 5150 SW Watson Street in Beaverton, Oregon, 97005. The family requests that in lieu of flowers gifts of remembrances be sent to the educational project in India that Virginia supported: Good Samaritan Ministries – India Satellite, 7929 SW Cirrus Drive #23, Beaverton, Oregon 97008.