Tracey Melvin Watson

Tracey Melvin Watson passed away on April 6, 2023 at the age of 97. He was surrounded by family. Tracey was born in Plymouth, Utah on May 1, 1925. The family moved to Robin, Idaho where Tracey grew up on the family farm.

He met his best friend and love of his life Ellen Norgaard and they were married on April 6, 1946. In their 77 years together, they raised 5 children Melvin, Trina, Claudia, Kate, and Shaun in Tyhee, Idaho.

Tracey not only had a long life, but he enjoyed it to the fullest. He was handy with construction, crafts, mechanics, electrical and always talked everyone into helping on projects. He passed down an amazing amount of knowledge and ingenuity in this way. He rarely came across a problem he couldn’t figure out, even if sometimes the fixes were creative and made the wives and mothers of the Watson clan shake their heads. This perseverance and resourcefulness is a skill that was passed on to his children and grandchildren and still has Watson women shaking their heads!

Farming was always part of Tracey’s life. He always worked a full-time job and farmed. He “hired” all of his children to help. They all loved having this special time together.

Trucking is another love that Tracey passed down to family. Tracey worked for Garrett Freight Lines for 40+ years. In the mid 1960’s Tracey pulled the first set of triple trailers behind a semi in the United States. Tracey moved to California for his job and took early retirement to come home and be with family in 1985. He went to work with his family at Watson Enterprises Inc. He and Ellen drove team for another 10 years together in this family business.

Tracey and Ellen bought a place in Bouse, Arizona and wintered there for 26 years. They spent their days riding 4 wheelers and their nights having big dinners, dancing, and playing cards with their many, many, friends there. The kids would come to visit the “Bouse house” and have to go home to rest because they were exhausted from trying to keep up! They loved the “jams” at the senior center. Ned Miller (From a Jack to a King) retired to Bouse and would sing around the campfire and Tracey loved it, but it was really his favorite when Ellen would sing. He loved music and was always singing some funny song and making everyone laugh.

The Watson family started riding motorcycles in 1969. They loved to go camping and trail riding. Moving on to 4 wheelers in the 1990’s (Tracey and Ellen put 10,000 miles on them in Bouse!) and, later in life, when Ellen didn’t like to drive alone anymore, they bought a side by side and were still riding and camping with family last summer. On one infamous ride, Ellen hit a rock that turned her machine and sent her down a steep hillside (read cliff). Tracey, riding behind her, said he thought “Well, Ellen wasn’t going by herself” and so he drove off the cliff right behind her!

Tracey and Ellen didn’t relax any more in Pocatello than they did in Arizona. They loved to have card parties with Tracey’s brothers, Sterlin and Clyde and their wives Janice and Norleen. They would play cards all night with the kids sleeping on the floor.

He loved his family. Besides his wife and children, he loved spending time with his nieces and nephews, and the ever-growing group of in-laws and grandchildren. Family time included: singing, camping, farming, riding machines, playing cards and so much more. Tracey was an amazing father that loved having his kids with him. It is truly a blessing to grow up with a father like that. He never wavered from being the best husband and father he could be.

Tracey and Ellen’s love was an example to everyone around them. They did everything together and everyone has so many fun memories of them together, too many to list. One memory shared by the kids is, Saturday night was always Tracey and Ellen’s “date night” but before they would go out, they would dance to Lawrence Welk with the kids.

Everyone that is lucky enough to have had Tracey as part of their life is truly blessed. Losing him has left a giant hole that can never be filled. He will be missed more than he will ever know by his wife, his brother, 3 remaining children, 13 grandchildren, 20 great grandchildren, 3 great-great-grandchildren, all of their spouses and significant others and so many more.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Orson and Evalina, his siblings, Hazel, Glover (Orson), Clint (Clinton), Alice Elaine, Darrell, Sterlin and Leroy, his children, Melvin and Claudia, and his grandsons, Joey, Buddy, and Jake.

A viewing will be held on Monday, April 10, 2023 from 5-7 pm at Colonial Chapel, 2005 S. 4th Ave. Pocatello, ID. Graveside services will be on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 2 pm at Restlawn Memorial Gardens, 2864 S. 5th Ave. Pocatello.

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