Donald Lee Berg

Don Berg passed away gracefully on February 6, 2014, at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle after a hard fought, 11 month battle with cholangiocarcinoma, a form of liver bile duct cancer. He was the third child of Goldie L. Helmers and Sidney O. Berg. Don was born on December 13, 1940 in Jamestown, North Dakota and moved to Everett prior to his 2nd birthday. He met the love of his life, Diane Stephens his junior year in high school and they graduated with the Class of '59 from Everett High School. Don and Diane recently celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary. He graduated from the University of Washington, College of Architecture, in 1964 and became a licensed architect in the State of Washington. In 1965, their daughter, Katherine, was born, followed in 1967 by their son, Craig. Throughout Don's career he worked in architecture and construction management with companies in Everett, Seattle and Bellevue. One of his favorite jobs was working as the Building and Construction Manager for Major Projects for the Archdiocese of Seattle. Don enjoyed combining his career talents with his spiritual life by getting to help the different parish communities with their growth and revitalization projects. He was an active member of his community having served on the City of Everett Planning Commission for many years, the Everett YMCA Board of Directors, the Everett School District Foundation, the Saint Mary Magdalen Parish Master Planning Board, on the board of Sunset Cove Home Owners Association and was the chairman of the Architectural Design Review Committee for Sunset Cove in Anacortes. Don designed all of the homes that he and his family lived in and he and Diane recently sold their home in Everett to move to a condo in Anacortes to be closer to Katherine and her family. He enjoyed his family life and treasured all the special occasions in grand fashion. Don is best known in the family for his love, compassion, mentorship, creativity and sense of humor. He was always present with his most up to date Nikon camera documenting each event for the scrapbooks. Don's favorite getaways included annual vacations to Kona, Hawaii with Diane and numerous trips to their second home in Ocean Park, Washington. A great memory is that Don always decorated an Easter ham with his pastry crust and special tools with a spiritual message for the holiday. One of the best times of year was the annual family pumpkin carving event. The family would meet at the pumpkin farm, choose the perfect pumpkin and spend the rest of the day carving the most intricate designs on the pumpkin. Don always decorated an 18 foot Christmas tree for the family to enjoy at the Berg Family Christmas Eve party. Due to cancer, he spent his last five weeks at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle and we would like to thank the medical professionals who spent countless hours trying to defeat the disease and all of our friends and relatives who provided support along the way. He is preceded in death by his son, Craig Berg; his brother, Eugene Berg; and his sister in law, Natalie Berg. Don is survived by his wife of 52 years, Diane; their daughter, Katherine Khile and her husband, Dan; his granddaughters: Stephanie and Allison Sherman and Kirsha Khile; his brother, Bert Berg and sister-in-law, Donna Berg; and many nieces and nephews. Donations may be made to the Saint Mary Magdalen Building Fund, 8517 7th Ave. SE, Everett, WA 98208 or the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, WA/AK Chapter 12, 123 NW 36th St #100, Seattle, WA 98107. A Vigil Service will be held at 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, February 12, 2014 at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, 8517 – 7th Avenue SE, Everett, WA. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 1:00 p.m., Thursday, February 13, 2014 at St. Mary Magdalen with a burial to follow the Mass at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park. There will be a reception following the burial at the church. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Inc., Anacortes, WA and the San Juan Islands. To share memories of Don, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.