Frederick P. SOUKUP

1931 - 2020

SOUKUP, Frederick P. Frederick Paul Soukup was a resident of Spokane, and transitioned to Heaven on January 20, 2020. He was born February 2, 1931 and passed days short of his 89th birthday. Fred's parents were Fred P. Soukup and Alice Soukup, He was the son of immigrant parents from Czechoslovakia circa 1898. Fred had one sibling - sister Pauline, who was born in 1926 and preceded him in death in 1998. She was 71 years old. Fred was raised in greater Cleveland, Ohio during the Great Depression. He attended high school in Rocky River, OH and he briefly attended the University of Kansas on a baseball scholarship. He graduated from Baldwin-Wallace College in Cleveland with a business degree. Frederick enlisted in the Navy during the Korean War. He befriended a shipmate, Jim Steverding, who would eventually become his brother-in-law by marrying Jim's sister, Nancy Ann in November of 1954. He enrolled in law school on a GI Bill but withdrew to raise a family. By 1961, his family had grown to one girl and three boys. Fred's early career was as a part-time real estate agent and full-time insurance adjuster in Cleveland, Ohio. His wife, Nancy, introduced him to a company called Addressograph-Multigraph, where she had clerked. He was hired as a salesman, and took a transfer to California in 1966. After one year in Stockton CA and another year in San Jose CA, Fred transferred again to Spokane, Washington. But he would soon quit to join forces with William W. Main and Associates, a real estate and land development company in 1968. His fifth child, a boy, arrived in December of 1970. Fred would eventually become a real estate broker, and opened his own outfit called Fred Soukup Realty in 1973, which was short-lived. He then moved his family in 1975 to Boise, Idaho and joined forces with Crocker Claims Insurance Company. He was hired on as the Pacific Northwest regional manager. However, he relocated both his job and his family back to Spokane in 1977. Within a few years Fred would also start up his second real estate company called Century 21-Alpha Omega Realty. Stagflation and skyrocketing interest rates would eventually derail this company. So, Fred shifted gears again and started a sideline business called Cruises of the Seas, a travel agency while re-establishing his regional management job with Crocker Claims. Fred was never one to let moss grow under his shoes. At age 56, Fred and Nancy purchased a 12-room motel in Newport, Washington. They renamed it Newport City Inn. Many years later Fred sold the motel on EBAY. But not before he and Nancy became snowbirds, living in Arizona in the winter months while enjoying the Pacific Northwest the rest of the time. By then grandchildren were arriving to add additional color to an already colorful life. Fred picked up creative writing by this time. In 2001, he penned a short story entitled "The Prague Connection." The non-fiction tale centered on his father's daring mission of infiltrating the Soviet Union for humanitarian reasons in 1964 at the height of the Cold War. It was published in 2016 with ISBN number 978-1530335916. Fred's son David, preceded him in death in 2015 at age 53. Later in life, Fred and Nancy moved to Seattle to be closer to their grandchildren, and ended up again in Spokane when Fred finally died of natural causes. His favorite brands were Old Spice After Shave, Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, and Roi-Tan cigars. His favorite actor was John Wayne. Fred is survived by his wife, Nancy, his children Karen, Mark, Jeff, and Chris; his grandchildren Andrew, Erin, Bethany, Tressa, Dylan, Derek, Cathy, Spencer, and Charlie; and a growing number of great-grandchildren and countless in-laws. Fred will be missed by all. Due to Covid-19 family and friends are limited to 30. Services are at 10:am Saturday August 22nd, 2020 at St. Thomas More Church, following a military salute at Holy Cross Cemetery. Online tributes may be made at www.holycrossofspokane.org.