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Keith Jefferts
1931—2014
Keith Jefferts’ life was characterized by three great passions: salmon, science, and piloting—both air and sea.
Much of it was spent at the controls of airplanes, helicopters, and the Wily King—on the trail of the wily King Salmon.
Salmon and science combined to characterize or define the latter half of his life, when he returned to the Pacific Northwest, took up residence on his beloved Shaw Island, and set about ensuring that there would always be salmon to catch and appropriate wine in his cellar to drink with them.
Together with boyhood friend and fisheries biologist Peter Bergman, he addressed the long-term survival of the salmon, engineering a means of identifying and managing various populations by tracking the lifecycle of members of particular populations, from California to Alaska. Keith and his team worked over the next decades to expand the technology to include salmon and other aquatic species across much of the globe.
Keith was born May 10, 1931, in Raymond, Wash., to Iris Bartlett Jefferts and Sidney Charles Jefferts. He acquired a remarkably broad set of skills and interests from his father, who was a jack-of-all-trades, and his appreciation for education from his mother, a schoolteacher.
His father may also have been the source of his passion for flight, as for many years, Sidney kept an airplane, hidden from his wife.
Raised on a farm in Edmonds, Keith graduated from Edmonds High in 1949 and went on to earn a B.S. in physics at the University of Washington. From university, he went to the U.S. Naval flight school, flying first Douglas A1 “Skyraiders” and ultimately, most of the Navy’s inventory of jet fighters in service in the 1950s and 1960s, ending his military flight career in F8 “Crusaders”. He received several awards during his Navy service, including one for heroism in landing a disabled A1 “Skyraider” from which he should have ejected; doing so would have doomed the other person aboard, so Keith managed to land the badly damaged aircraft safely.
After completing his active duty tour, Keith remained in the Naval reserves, returning to the University of Washington where he completed a PhD in atomic physics under Hans Dehmelt (Nobel Laureate, 1989), after presenting a thesis on the hyperfine structure of the H2+ molecule.
Bell Laboratories, in Murray Hill, N.J., then became his research home for the next 10 years. There, he became interested in radio astronomy and began a collaboration with radio astronomers Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson (Nobel Laureates, 1978) during which they discovered carbon monoxide in the Orion Nebula, contributing a fundamental component to the understanding of stellar dynamics—astrophysicists would ultimately learn that virtually all stars are formed in galactic molecular clouds similar to Orion’s.
In the early 1970s, Keith and his then-wife Elaine formed Northwest Marine Technology (NMT) in order to assume control and begin production of the fisheries management tools Keith and Bergman had developed through the previous decade. Existing salmon tagging methods were insufficient to permit researchers to track the hatchery groups adequately and the population was declining.
In 1974, the Boldt Decision issued and Keith left Bell Labs to move the fledgling NMT to the Northwest. The new management methodology featured binary coded magnetic wire tags, harmlessly implanted in young salmon and recovered when the fish matured.
Coded wire technology finally gave researchers the tools to track and manage a now-critical salmon population. More than a billion tags have since been implanted in salmon and other marine and animal species world-wide.
www.nmt.us./aboutnmt/history.shtml
Keith was an avid outdoorsman and early member of the Mountaineers and REI— backpacking trips in the Cascades and Olympics (always with a fly rod or two) were an omnipresent part of Keith’s graduate-school and early parenting years, and he continued those adventures with his children well into their adulthoods.
Throughout the years at Bell Labs, each summer included a cross-country family haul to the San Juan Islands, first in Bellancas, and four kids and two dogs later, in a series of Cessna 195s, and, ultimately twin-engined Beechcraft, delivering a gleeful family to summers of outdoor joy. His children well remember the long hours between stops and challenging hours over the Rocky Mountains, yet nevertheless three of his children and his granddaughter are pilots.
After he settled again in Washington, his work took him regularly to Alaska, up and down the Pacific coast, and around the world. In later years, he regularly flew a de Havilland Beaver into the interior of Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington in search of fish, solitude, and the occasional case of wine.
He flew a variety of other civilian aircraft over the years, including a Citabria, Cessna 172, Mitsubishi MU-2, Socata TBM, and two helicopters. Keith amassed some 16, 000 hours of flight time during his 65-plus years of flying, including some 7, 000 hours of radial engine time—quite a feat for a pilot who never flew commercially.
After returning to Shaw, Keith made regular field research trips up and down the Pacific coast, discovering the beauty of Tenakee Inlet in southeastern Alaska, and making that his summer base for many years. Inspired by his friend and fishing partner Stan Moberly, he piloted a series of fishing boats (always named the Wily King) from Seattle each spring to Tenakee, a perfect base from which to oversee tagging and retrieval operations, travel to the Okanagan Valley’s burgeoning vineyards, and, of course, to fish for salmon and halibut.
In 1953, Keith married
Elaine Ryan, also of Edmonds, and together they raised four children. Keith’s son Steven, also a physicist, will forever remember the look on Keith’s face when he performed his first gravitation experiment – jumping from a ladder at the second story while holding an umbrella as a parachute, or his first thermodynamics experiment, during which he penetrated the screen of Keith’s oscilloscope with a Weller soldering iron.
Katharine will never forget the summer he taught her to dive, the backpacking and flying trips, building a crystal radio with him at age six and learning from him to develop film.
Ingrid’s fondest memory is of Keith, smiling through his luxuriant handlebar mustache, while playing his Martin 00 and singing “Scarlet Ribbons” in his rich baritone. Erik will always remember the summertime backpacking and fishing trips that invariably began with provisioning at the original REI store on Capitol Hill.
Keith also believed in giving back. In 1984, he formed and funded the Fisheries Management Foundation, and he and Sue Jefferts founded HonorWorks, a nonprofit focused on healing the damage done through ignorance in the raising of children of all cultures.
In 2005, Keith was honored by The American Fisheries Society Carl Sullivan Fishery Conservation award; the Western Division jointly recognized him and Pete Bergman with the Award of Excellence in 1985. Keith was also a fellow of the American Physical Society.
Keith is survived by his wife, Sue Hutchins Jefferts, brother, Kirk Jefferts, his children, Katharine (Richard Schori), Ingrid (John Berryman), Steven (Stefania Romisch), and Erik (Julie Howard), and stepdaughter Amy Bitzer (Jason Vance), grandchildren C. Allen Jefferts DeFranco, Kate Schori Harris (Aaron Harris), and Ethan Vance, and great-grandson Marcus Harris.
A celebration of Keith’s life will be held at Moles Farewell Tributes in Bellingham on Sept. 6 at 3 p.m.; a gathering of neighbors and employees will be held on Shaw Island the following Saturday.
Memorial donations may be made to HonorWorks. https://web.archive.org/web/20140913220953/https://www.honorworks.net/donate.html
— Family of Keith Jefferts
John Nord
John Nord, 82, of Friday Harbor, Wash. passed from this life Aug. 6, 2014.
There will be a private family service at which he will be buried on the island he loved. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Anacortes, Wash., and the San Juan Islands. To share memories of John, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
— Family of John Nord
Ronald Marshall Nelson
June 21, 1929 — July 26, 2014
Our dad, Ron Nelson, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, on July 26, 2014 in La Conner, Wash.
Dad was born in Seattle, Wash. on June 21, 1929, the only child of Alice Gertrude (King) and Angus Johannes (Joe) Nelson. Dad grew up in Friday Harbor, Wash., on San Juan Island, and graduated from Central Washington University in economics. While there he met our mom, Flossie Mitchell, his wife of 59 years, who preceded him in death.
Dad, who served in the Korean War, retired from the US Naval Aviation as a commander after 21 years in the reserves and retired from Boeing after 29 years in finance. After retirement Dad spent 10 seasons gill-netting in Alaska. Dad and mom traveled and spent winters in Arizona.
Dad is survived by his children, Cheryl, Craig (Abbie), Kathy (Roger), Ron (Colleen); nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild, for whom he was a great model of hard work and integrity. Thanks for everything, dad.
A Celebration of Life will be held Aug. 24, 2014 at 2 p.m. at the Shelter Bay Club House, in La Conner, Wash.
Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Anacortes, and the San Juan Islands. To share memories of Ron, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
— Family of Ronald Nelson
Boyd Crumpacker
February 11, 1961 — July 22, 2014
Boyd Malcolm Crumpacker of Friday Harbor, born Feb. 11, 1961 in Seattle, died on July 22, 2014.
He is survived by his father, Leonard, his two daughters, Stefanie and Morgen, his brothers, Blair, Michael, Greg, and sister, Marilen. He was preceded in death by his mother Marian.
Boyd enjoyed spending time with his family, friends and his beloved dog, Mattie. Boyd will be remembered for his wonderful sense of humor, his passion for collecting old trucks, his remarkable strength, his amazing ability to get the job done, all along while keeping a smile on his face while doing so, regardless of the challenge!
Services will be held in memory of his life, on Saturday Aug. 9 at 4 p.m., in Friday Harbor, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 1013 Lampard Road.
— Family of Boyd Crumpacker
Rob Roy McGregor
1932 — 2014
Rob Roy McGregor, 81, of Friday Harbor, Wash. passed away peacefully on Monday, July 21, 2014 in Friday Harbor. Teddy, his wife of 60 years, was by his side.
His family will remember a generous and loving father and husband who always knew what he wanted. Traveling was a passion and he was fortunate enough to see the world.
Rob was many things: charitable, decisive, funny, and determined. He was an excellent golfer, a better poker player and he enjoyed an evening gin and tonic. We will miss him.
Rob is survived by his wife, Teddy; son and daughter-in-law, Jim and Mary McGregor; daughter, Betsy McGregor; grandchildren, Brittany and spouse, Ryan Gaither, Rob Roy McGregor; and great-grandchildren, Ava, Layla, and Samuel.
A celebration of Rob’s life will take place on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2014 at 1:30 p.m., at the Presbyterian Church in Friday Harbor. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Anacortes, and the San Juan Islands.
To share memories of Rob, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
— Family of Rob McGregor
Donald Martin Hickethier
1933 — 2014
Donald Martin Hickethier, beloved husband, father and grandfather, died July 19, 2014, of natural causes.
Don was born in Panama to Henry H. Hickethier and Ruth Hickethier (nee Goucher).
Don was raised in Texas, Missouri and San Diego while his father served in the Navy. Don graduated from Grossmont High School, San Diego, in 1949 and San Diego State University in 1954, where he met Mary M. Quinones. They were married
in 1954 and had five children.
Don went to work for the First National Bank of California, transferring to the Oceanside California branch in 1960, working first as a loan officer, and later, as branch manager.
In the 1970s he went to work for South Coast Asphalt in Oceanside (later Hanson’s Aggregates), first as its CFO and later, as his expertise in the field grew, as its regulatory affairs manager.
Through all these efforts he was well known by most of the local city council and government officials. Don worked on various projects until retiring at the age of 76 as a consultant for Escondido Sand and Gravel.
Through Don’s second wife, Clara Joann, Don discovered the San Juan Islands and became a regular visitor, often staying for the holiday season and most of the summer at Joann’s mother’s house, on Mill Road, in the 1980s and 90s. Don built his and Joann’s dream island home on Cattle Point Road in 1998.
Don and Joann had a close circle of friends and family, becoming regulars at the VFW Hall (the Club) and attending numerous civic activities. Don was also an enthusiastic supporter of the San Juan Historical Society, and during the winter months Don and Joann “kept in touch” by entertaining any friends and family from the island who would venture south for a visit to their Oceanside, Calif. home.
Don loved a good party, fishing, hunting, and “hanging” with his many friends, family and neighbors. He loved and could cook seafood, chili and venison in all forms. He was well known for his generosity, sense of humor, and love of the outdoors (at least if it wasn’t too cold or wet).
Don was predeceased by his second wife, Clara Joann Hickethier, mother-in-law Juanita Rouleau (nee Egeland) and son Martin Hickethier.
He is survived by his former wife Mary Hickethier, his daughters Sharon Henry (Terry) of Oceanside, Calif., Betsy Allen of Carlsbad, Calif, his sons Don Hickethier of Oceanside, Calif., Fred Hickethier of San Francisco, Calif., stepson Phil Fuehr of Edmonds, Wash., stepdaughter Pam Fuehr of Friday Harbor, Wash., eight grandchildren, one great-grandson, and his best friend and brother-in-law, Ed (Barbara) Rouleau of Friday Harbor, Wash.
Don’s family will be holding a Celebration of Life to remember their dad and grandfather. We hope all his friends and family will grab their lawn chairs and come share their favorite stories of Don on Saturday, Aug. 9, 2014, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., at Three Corners Lake, one of Dad’s favorite places to chill with Ed and the folks.
All who knew him are welcome, where we’ll be tipping a final toast to him and his ‘wet weasels.’ If possible, please RSVP at 760-716-8583.
His family would like to thank his wonderful caregivers who allowed us to bring dad up several more years after his health weakened; they provided him with great quality of life. Also, we thank the Mullis Senior Center, where he enjoyed many, many lunches and the awesome services provided.
In lieu of flowers, we ask that donations be made in his name to the San Juan Historical Society (https://web.archive.org/web/20140913220953/https://sjmuseum.org/get-involved/donate/)
— Family of Donald Hickethier
June Arlene (Schinkel, Davison) Stewart
Janurary 24, 1925 — July 7, 2014
June was born Jan. 24, 1925 to Walter Daniel Schinkel and Ellen Vertie Klinger in Branchdale, Schuyllkill County, Penn., at the home of her grandparents, Dorothy and Gurney Klinger.
Born on the same day as a total solar eclipse, the doctor had prepared some window glass by blackening it so he could view the eclipse; however, the doctor was so busy delivering June when the eclipse was at its fullest, that he missed it.
Her father, Walter Schinkel, died of pneumonia at the age of 23, when June was only four months old. He worked for the telephone company, and one day he caught a chill while climbing poles during a spring rain in the Pennsylvania mountains. June always remembered the terrible grief that her mother experienced.
June and her five loving and protective uncles lived in the same house; they doted on and adored June. One of her fondest memories was when she was a toddler and they would put her in a wagon and push her down a hill with some of them at the bottom to catch her.
Sometimes she fell out of the wagon, and they would pick her up and throw her high into the air to keep June from crying, so they wouldn’t get in trouble from their sister, Ellen. They did the same thing with a sled in the winter.
June and her mother, Ellen, lived with her Klinger grandparents until Ellen married
Charles Henry Davison in 1930, when June was about five years old. During the 1930 Depression, her stepfather, Davison, lost his job, and the family returned to live again with June’s grandparents, who now resided in Shamokin, Penn.
When June was in the fifth or sixth grade, they moved into their own home on Montgomery Street. The house didn’t have the luxury of indoor plumbing, and she vividly remembered having to use indoor chamber pots and going outside in the brutal Pennsylvania winter to use the outhouse.
The Depression was very hard on the family who couldn’t afford store-bought clothes, so her mother would expertly fashion flour bags as dresses for her with crocheted collars and embroidered flowers.
June attended Stevens Elementary School until eighth grade and then attended Shamokin High School, where she played the harp in the orchestra and graduated in 1943.
At 15, she worked part-time at the Newberry Five and Dime Store, beginning at the counter and, later, graduating to the soda fountain. June’s habit of never eating the bottom of an ice cream cone resulted from this experience.
During high school, she met her future husband, Martin “Marty” Stewart, who lived in Catawissa, Penn. Her fondest story was their first date.
Marty and his date, and June and her date, went on a double-date in Marty’s roadster, a two-seat car with an outside rumble seat. During the course of the double date, June got wet and couldn't sit outside in the rumble seat.
The chivalrous Marty insisted that June sit up front with him, out of the weather. June and Marty instantly hit it off and the rest was history.
They were married
in Fannin County, Bonham, Texas, on July 17, 1943, while Marty attended pilot training school prior to entering WW II to fly a B-24 Liberator bomber.
After the war, the young couple bought their first home in Bloomsburg, Penn., and Marty got a job at the Magee Carpet Company. It was in this house that June cared for her dying mother, who succumbed to cancer in 1950.
Dad re-entered the Air Force for the Korean War and made a career of it, which converted us into a classic Air Force family for whom June fully embraced the role of an officer’s wife. During their military career, they lived in Pennsylvania, Texas, Massachusetts, Georgia, Kansas, Florida, California, Taiwan, Philippines, and Columbia (South America).
From 1944 until 1960, June and Marty produced a family of three sons and a daughter.
June was an excellent high school student and won a scholarship after graduation from high school to enter a nursing program, but she declined this to marry Dad and follow him to Texas; however, later in the 1960s, she attended college herself while living in Bellville, Ill. and graduated with honors, receiving her registered nursing license in 1971.
She worked 19 years in coronary care (CCU) and intensive care units (ICU) until 1990. June was known for and received many compliments on her professionalism, commitment, expertise, and quick wit. She also lied quite shamelessly about her age and was employed as a competent nurse much longer than is normal.
Mother had a deep respect for education, and the numerous Saturday trips with her children to the library to get three books, “only one of which could be a picture book”, are fondly remembered.
Marty finished his stellar Air Force career of 36 years at McClellan Air Force base in California. When June retired from her nursing profession after 19 years, in 1990, they had their dream home built in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, off the coast of the state of Washington to spend their twilight and sunset years. Even after living in so many places, June and Marty never found a place they loved as much as San Juan Island.
June took great pride in telling family and friends about her last sighting of eagles that nested nearby or pods of orca, or minke whales, that frequently swam by their water-view dream home.
This is an isolated island with limited medical facilities, and the only way to reach it is by ferry, boat, or small aircraft. Marty owned a Cessna 182, a four-seat airplane that was his pride and joy.
From their island home they would travel frequently to nearby and cross-country locations. Their military career of constantly moving often didn’t give them the opportunity to become involved with local activities, so when they settled into their new home they immersed themselves in their church and community. As a retired nurse, June utilized her nursing skills to provide non-medical support to the island community and Marty air-transported patients or clergy to and from the island, as well as lending his carpentry and mechanical skills to help others.
When Marty passed away December 2005, as the result of cancer, after 62 years of marriage, June remained in their Friday Harbor home and continued volunteering at the library, the senior center office, and the community theater.
In 2009, while visiting her daughter in Florida, June suffered a stroke at her daughter’s residence. After making a remarkable recovery, she realized living alone in her isolated Friday Harbor home was no longer feasible.
June decided to move into the continuing care retirement community, Freedom Plaza, in Sun City Center, Fla. to be near her daughter, who eventually secured employment there. June enjoyed the independent and active lifestyle at Freedom Plaza together with the knowledge that she was no longer alone.
She embedded herself in the community and made many friends. She especially enjoyed helping with the Freedom Plaza theater, playing dominos with her friends, learning Bridge, writing biographies of the incoming new residents for the Freedom Plaza flyer, attending the senior graduate school, engaging in debates, socializing with the community, and attending the coffee concerts.
She also researched an extensive genealogy of her family. She was well known throughout the community for her writings, wit, and great sense of humor.
It is with great sorrow that on July 7, 2014 June succumbed to complications of a traumatic brain injury incurred after a fall two weeks prior.
The family wishes to thank the Tampa General Hospital Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit and their team of professionals for tireless efforts in providing June with compassionate and dignified support.
There will be a Celebration Memorial for June at the auditorium of Freedom Plaza, located in Sun City Center, Fla, at 1010 American Eagle Blvd. on 30 July 2014, at 10 a.m. No funeral service will be held.
Her cremated remains will be taken by her children to her beloved Friday Harbor on San Juan Island and laid to rest next to her husband Marty.
June is survived by three sons and a daughter: Martin Van Buren Stewart, Jr. of Murfreesboro, Tenn.; Dennis Marshall Stewart of Higginsville, Mo.; Mitchell Wayne Stewart of Grass Valley, Calif.; and Cynthia Stewart Graham of Riverview, Fla. June also has four grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
June had an extraordinary life, but it was never as fulfilling after her husband, Marty, passed away.
They are now blessedly together again, and we find solace with that thought.
— Family of June Arlene Stewart
