John Raymond Spence

A kind and gentle soul has left us for the great beyond. John Raymond Spence peacefully passed away due to complications of Parkinson's disease and congestive heart failure Oct. 6, 2022 at home in Port Angeles in the company of his wife and family. He leaves behind his wife of 67 years, Donna, his three sons, Kimball John, Kevin Dale, and Brian Clifford and their wives, Lori, Leah and Michelle, as well as six grandchildren--Tanner, Tyler, Dylan, Cale, Walker & Ferryn, all of whom declared him a perfect Grandad. His two brothers Peter Kimball and Kimball Guy and their wives also survive him.

John was born Feb. 4, 1933 in Fairbury, Nebraska to Raymond Guy Spence and Emily Ernestine Putnam Spence. He spent the better part of his childhood in Oklahoma, with many visits to his grandparents in Nebraska and Kansas. In 1948 the family moved to Silver Spring, Maryland, where John played varsity baseball for Montgomery Blair High School. He still celebrated and remembered those youth years in recent communications with his brothers Peter and Kimball. John enrolled at the University of Colorado in 1952, where he joined Phi Delta Theta fraternity and majored in structural engineering. A blind date with Donna Miriam Groff led to their marriage in 1955, just before their senior year at Boulder. They graduated in June 1956, set forth to Los Angeles, California with all their worldly possessions in their aging brown Dodge, and John took a position as a structural engineer with Pike Trailer Company, which manufactured truck-trailers.

Their three sons arrived in quick succession, keeping them very busy with their many activities. John joyfully attended hundreds of baseball games and wrestling matches and also enjoyed playing guitar and singing harmony with his wife, friends, and family for 6 decades. John's immediate and extended family were always foremost in his focus. He raised his sons under the guiding principles of kindness, patience, work, play and family togetherness. His love of the oceans and mountains led him to surfing, scuba diving, clamming, fishing, camping and backpacking as often as he could with his family. That love of the outdoors was infectious to his 3 boys who all relish time and activity in natural environments and are dedicated to the protection thereof. A trip to visit his youngest brother in Germany in 1971 infected John and Donna with the travel bug, inspiring exploration of both the western and eastern reaches of the world.

In 1990, 34 years after joining Pike Trailer Company John retired as CEO, and this opened the door for him and Donna to take a 6-month journey in their VW camper throughout Europe. Most of their time was spent in eastern Europe, which had just escaped the oppression of the communist regime. It was a life-changing odyssey, reinforcing their gratefulness for the very free and privileged society we have in the United States. The bonds of friendship with people from all over the world which were created on that trip survive to this day. After a few years respite to enjoy the birth and early childhood of the grandchildren, the travel bug resurfaced, and John and Donna were off again, to Asia, the South Pacific, and Central America, with an annual trip to Hawaii as well.

Exploration of the western states for a place to spend their remaining years led them to Port Angeles. Their son Kevin designed their home, which has been a place of music and joy for the last 22 years and was John's peaceful refuge in his last days. The family will gather in Denver in the coming months to celebrate John's long and successful life. With his passing hundreds of individuals have reached out to his family and commented on his compassion, caring, and kindness. These qualities he always attributed to his father Raymond. In fact, just the evening before his passing, he gratefully recalled his own father's kindness. His legacy will endure as his family members strive to follow his example of kindness to others and care for the environment.

Gifts in his memory can be made to Soroptimist of Sequim and volunteer hospice of Clallam County, whose prompt and caring assistance aided his peaceful passing.