Luther Dee Malone

Maj. Luther Dee Malone 1940-2023 Luther Dee Malone passed away on March 22, 2023, in Twin Falls, Idaho at the age of 83. He was born in Huntsville, Arkansas in 1940 to Marion Gaven and Mary Alpha (Walden) Malone. Luther’s family moved from Arkansas to Buhl, Idaho in 1946. After a few years in Idaho, the family returned to Arkansas to care for ailing grandparents, then after their passing the family returned to Idaho, where Luther went to school and graduated from Buhl High School in 1957. In 1957 Luther joined the Idaho National Guard as an enlisted soldier. After four years of service, in 1961, he accepted a commission for the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC). While a member of the ROTC, he attended the University of Idaho. In 1966, he transferred to active duty with the Army as a first lieutenant and was deployed to Vietnam. Luther was promoted to captain before returning to the Idaho National Guard in 1972. Then in 1976, he was again promoted, this time to the rank of major and recognized for his hard work and outstanding course work score. He retired from the National Guard in April 1979 after 22 years of service. While in the Idaho National Guard Reserves, Luther worked for Green Giant and met Elvina May (Reinhold) Christopherson. They were married on November 11, 1964. They later had two children, Cynthia and David. During their marriage the couple moved often for Luther’s military career, which included time abroad in Germany. They were divorced in March of 1972. Luther married Virginia Ann Pickel in May 1973. They welcomed their daughter, April, in 1974. Throughout their marriage they focused on raising their blended family until they divorced in 1982. To this day, Virginia’s children still think of Luther as their father. Luther was an entrepreneur and throughout his life he owned many businesses including a security company and Computer Place, which he co-owned with his partner Ed Noel. In 1995, while working on her computer at Computer Place, Luther met Carol Rodgers. They went on to spend the next twenty-six years together until her unexpected passing in 2021. Luther was passionate about reading, golfing, flying and technology. After graduating from high school, he received his pilot’s license, something he was extremely proud of and talked about often. Flying was an interest he shared with his son-in-law Brad; they would often have long conversations after Brad began taking lessons. As Luther got older, he learned to golf, and would take every opportunity to play with his brother Harold, brother in-law Cliff, son David, son in-law Roger and grandson Colby. He loved sharing stories from his past with his grandchildren along with his knowledge of computers. Luther is survived by his children, Cynthia and Roger Hudgens, David and Daineal Malone, and April Lancaster; grandchildren, Jessica and Aaron Carr, Colby Baldwin, Kamii and Berry Lattin, Nate Lancaster, Aisling Malone, and Aneurin Malone; great-grandchildren Qin Baldwin, Maxwell Baldwin, Athena Lattin and Chevelle Lattin. Additional surviving family members include his brother Harold Malone, sister, Charlotte Maxfield, in-laws Bev Malone and Cliff Maxfield along with many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his life partner Carol Rodgers; his parents Gaven and Alpha; brother James Paul Roberts; sister Wanda Lee Dotson; brother in-law Hugh Dotson; son in-law Brad Lancaster and his nephew Kelly Malone. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in his honor to the National Kidney Foundation at www.kidney.org