Fred, Julie & Gary

At 11:00, there will be a screening of Fred’s documentary “The Noble Spirit” — not to be missed! Then 12:00 to 2:00, Dan Schindler will play a selection of Fred’s favorite songs. It will be a great way to send off our dad’s spirit and we hope you’ll join us. Be prepared: his viewing is a very powerful experience.

Dear Friends,

The time has come to say farewell to a most noble man, Fred Noble. He finally reached the summit of his Everest on the morning of May 1, 2014. We told him to to ski down the other side and meet up with Mark and Hans…and don’t forget to watch out for those trees! Fred made it to May 1st for various reasons. It was his ex-wife’s birthday and his grand daughter’s birthday, as well as the day he had to reach in order for the VA to pay a portion of his enormous caregiver cost. We have no idea how he knew all of this, as he was in a sleeping state in those last few days, but we can only guess that he wanted to be in control until the end in typical Noble style.

If you would like to say goodbye to Fred in person, please drop in for the viewing at the Omega Funeral Home on Friday, May 9, 10:00am-5:00pm or Saturday, May 10, 10:00am-2:00pm. Omega is located at 223 SE 122nd Avenue Portland, OR 97233. It is literally 5 minutes up the street from Fred’s house.

If you plan on going to the viewing, please be aware that Fred wanted to go out in casual style — he did not want a clean shave or fancy suit. He did not want a funeral, as he always stated his life was a living funeral after the ALS diagnosis. We had to talk him into holding a viewing for his friends and family. He said “sounds sad to me” but eventually agreed that we could allow it for closure.

We celebrated Fred’s last days with Dan Shindler playing acoustic guitar and singing for three nights. We watched the Blazers win a game together. We also had wine, women and song on his last night. We had to let the “Chick Whisperer” have it like he wanted it. Just know it was absolutely beautiful and his energy was pouring throughout the room.

He will be forever in our hearts and actions as that is The Noble Spirit.

In lieu of flowers or gifts to the family, please donate to the documentary fund by sending a check to Julie Bakkala at 3776 Pleasant View Drive Keizer, OR 97303 or using Paypal on the web site itself by clicking here »

Terry Richard wrote a wonderful tribute to Fred in the Oregonian this weekend, you can read it here »

Hope to see you soon,
– Julie and Gary