Dewey Dwayne Emerson, 65, of Albany passed away Thursday at Samaritan Evergreen Hospice house.  Dwayne was born in Corvallis, OR.  He was the son of Dewey Emerson and Carmaleeta (Wilson) Long.

Dwayne married his high school sweetheart, Debra Kay Cowley, on July 17, 1976, after graduating from West Albany High School in 1973.

Dwayne first worked for his father at Emerson Sheet Metal, then was later employed by Wah Chang for 20 plus years.  He had to take early retirement after being diagnosed with leukemia that he fought with for 23 years.

Dwayne and Debbie never had any children, but always had their beloved dogs that were loved and treated like their children. Dwayne was an avid gun collector and loved hunting, fishing and spending time in beautiful Central Oregon as much as he and his wife, Debra could.

Dwayne is survived by his wife Debra Kay Emerson, sister Carolyn Thurman of Albany, brothers Kendall Emerson and Randall Emerson of Madras, OR.

Dwayne was preceded in death by his father, Dewey Emerson, mother Carmaleeta Long, sisters Donna Kaufman, Annabelle Broughton, and brother Raymond Emerson.

Memorial services will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 28 at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, 2515 Queen Ave. SE, in Albany.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Cancer Research Institute Memorial, donations can be made online at www.cancerresearch.org/memorial.

AAsum-Dufour Funeral Home is handling the arrangements (www.aasum-dufour.com).