Porter Alexander Willis, 85, lifelong rancher and horseman, passed away on July 3, 2008, at Doctor’s Medical Center in Modesto.

He is survived by his loving wife of 62 years, Averyel Mae Brown Willis; five married children, Porter Lynn, Alan, Marilee Euhus, Rob and Dean; 14 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren; brother-in-law, Shine Tuttle and a large extended family of nieces, nephews, cousins, in-laws and close friends he and Averyel visited frequently traveling to six different states each year.

Among the large ranches he managed were the Cammatta Ranch in Creston, the Swan Lake Ranch in Klamath Falls, Ore., Columbia River Associates in Clatskanie, Ore., the CRA and J-O Feedlots in Payette, Idaho and he retired to the Buckeye Ranch currently managed by his son Porter Lynn Willis of Tracy.

During his life he raised and rode many fine quarter horses including the Northwest Champion Cutting Horse Blaze Drift.

He said, “If I’m going to spend all my time horseback then I’m going to ride a good one.”

He always did and was particularly fond of Bras D’Or and Driftwood bloodlines that he spent a lifetime preserving.

He was born in 1923 in Boonville where he grew up with his brother Denny and sisters Edna Beth Tuttle and Allo Logan Colter. He returned often to the Anderson Valley where he will be buried on Saturday, July 12 in the Boonville Cemetery where many other members of his family have taken up permanent residence.

After completing high school in Boonville, he attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where he specialized in animal husbandry and spent his summers working on the Cammatta Ranch where he met his future wife, Averyel Mae Brown, the daughter of ranch manager Dean L. Brown.

His education was cut short by World War II. He served in the Pacific with the Army’s 11th Airborne Division, 187th Paraglider Infantry, 1st Battalion, then became a paratrooper machine gunner. He fought in New Guinea and the Philippines and was with the occupation forces in Japan.

He returned home from the war and married Averyel in 1946. They lived two years in Boonville sheep ranching. He then became ranch manager of the Cammatta Ranch when his father-in-law, Dean Brown, retired. He managed the Cammatta Ranch for 10 years until it sold, then went on to manage the other ranches.

After he retired, he and Averyel spent much of their time traveling, visiting family and friends and camping in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Wisconsin. He especially enjoyed horseback vacations in the California Sierras and the Idaho Sawtooths.

He had a wonderful sense of humor and made life fun for all with his many wonderful stories. The world is a happier place because he lived in it and his family and friends will miss him.