Lester J. King

Lester J. KING Lester J. King of Bellevue passed away peacefully on February 28th at Evergreen Hospital Hospice in Kirkland after a long battle with Parkinson's at the age of 90. Les was born in Cashmere Washington on February 23, 1921 the son of Harry and Marie King. Les graduated from Cashmere High School in 1939 and was an accomplished trumpet player, playing in the high school band, UW band and a dance band. He attended Central Washington College until World War II called him into service as an officer in the U.S. Navy. He attended flight school in Pensacola, Florida and was assigned as the base gunnery officer at Adak Naval Air Station in the Aleutians. After the war Les finished his BA degree at the UW. In December 1945 he married his sweetheart Betty Bergren. Their marriage lasted over 65 years and they had 2 sons and a daughter together. Les only had 2 jobs in his life; a route driver for Puget Sound News and a driver salesman for the Pepsi Cola Seven-Up Bottling Company. He retired from the latter in 1978 after 21 years of service. He was proud to have been a member of the Teamster's Union for over 30 years. After retiring Les and Betty traveled extensively in their Winnebago motor home, sometimes being away for months at a time. They also enjoyed their occasional trips to Reno. After living for years in North Seattle they relocated to Bellevue in 1994 where they enjoyed their new condo at Silver Glen, a senior retirement community. Les and Betty enjoyed entertaining friends and relatives and liked to take walks around the Bellevue area. After being diagnosed with Parkinson's, Les lived at home as long as he could before going into assisted care. He will be remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather and will be truly missed. Les is survived by his wife of 65 years Betty King of Bellevue, sons John (Ronnie), Jerry (Julia) and daughter Leslie, all of the Seattle-Tacoma area. He is also survived by 5 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren, sister Patricia Pettelle of Winthrop Washington and numerous nieces and nephews. At Les's request there will be no services. In lieu of flowers please send donations to Evergreen Hospital Hospice, Kirkland Washington or Hopelink.