Ernie Anton DINGER

September 5, 1928 – April 13, 2025

Ernie Anton Dinger, affectionately known as Ernie, passed away peacefully on April 13, 2025, in Kent, Washington, at the age of 96.

Born on September 5, 1928, in Ironton, Iron County, Missouri, Ernie lived through nearly a century marked by remarkable change. From his early years in Missouri and Colorado to his working life in Washington State, he bore witness to the evolving American landscape with quiet strength and dignity.

He was the only son and fourth youngest with four sisters born to Anton Joseph Romyne Dinger (1892-1963) and Mary Frances Ellen VanArsdall Dinger (1898 – 1989) of Malott, WA. He went to Okanogan Valley, WA elementary school and left the family farm at 17 years old to become a Marine.

Earning the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor in 1945 at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, CA and completing Infantry Training School at Camp Pendleton, CA Ernie was assigned to the 1st First Marine Division, and he was ordered to Tientsin China. Ernie served as a China Marine until 1948 to return to Bremerton, WA and receive his first honorable discharge. As a member of the Ready Reserve, in 1950 he received orders to join the 5th Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton, CA and embarked to Korea for Battle of Chosin Reservoir and fighting on the East-Central Front and Western Front until returning to Marine Barracks Bremerton, WA near the end of hostilities in 1953. As a Staff Sergeant he received his second honorable discharge and returned to Grand Junction, CO to reunite with his family and his young bride.

Ernie was married on November 14, 1949, to Lorna Lea Altenbern of Delta, CO, in a ceremony in Grand Junction, CO.

After over a decade of marriage, Ernie and Lorna were blessed by the adoption of two children and brought a son and daughter into a home of lavish love, nourishment and comfort. For a generation, this family enjoyed support, memorable gatherings and pure noisy fun with Ernie and Lorna's family and friends.

Ernie's driving career started with the issuance of a Colorado State Chauffeur's License in Grand Junction, CO, hauling road equipment and then a bold move to Spokane, WA where he became a member of Teamsters Local 690. The trucking industry in Spokane put him in the driver's seat with United Buckingham Freight and later with the Silver Eagle Company. He was a master of local delivery in the city of Spokane and the Spokane Valley. He was a notable friend of local businesses and the community of friends and family of small businesses while Spokane shaped the Inland Empire. Shortly before his retirement in 1991, he was honored by the Washington State Patrol for 39 years of service and more than two million miles of accident-free driving on the streets and highways of the State of Washington. His reputation for commitment and reliability was well known and set a standard that journeymen and apprentice drivers aspire to. These traits are the foundation that assured the well-being of his family.

With the freedom of retirement, he enjoyed spending all the time he could muster to have breakfast, coffee, or a chat to sustain the many friendships he built over the years. He and Lorna put some more miles on the road with a stroll up the Al-Can highway for a full summer of fishing the rivers, secret fishing holes and a charter or two near and around Homer, AK. After the haul that came home in that motorhome, his family and all the branches of it enjoyed Fish Frys, smoking salmon, and all the goodies a family potluck brings to a thankful table. He and Lorna continued to log miles on the roads of America to visit family and their nomadic children.

A core of his strength was trust in faith. Ernie was active with daily devotional study and prayer. He enjoyed worship and fellowship in the communities of Holy Cross, Gloria Dei, and Pilgrim Lutheran Church, LCMS.

He was a reluctant hero, humble in all his success from a teenager to a retired Teamster. A Marine with a story from Grand Junction, CO to Malott, WA to San Diego, CA to China, to Korea, Bremerton, WA and Spokane, WA.

Ernie was preceded in death by his parents; three of his sisters; and his devoted wife of 57 years; and is survived by his two children (Ronald and Marilynn); three grandchildren (Frances, Aaron, and Anthony); and two great-grandchildren (Carson and Luna) who will miss him dearly.

We all have our cherished memories of time with Ernie over many years from our childhood to being "grown-ups." He was a patient mentor, a leader, and a source of inspiration to those around him. Pause and remember our dear friend, brother, nephew, uncle, cousin, neighbor, father, and grandfather. May his memory bring comfort to those who knew him.

A memorial service to honor Ernie's life will be conducted on June 16, 2025, at 12:30 pm, at Greenwood Memorial Terrace, located at 211 N. Government Way, Spokane, WA 99224. A celebration of life reception will follow at Ruby River Hotel, 700 N. Division St., Spokane, WA 99202.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the American Heart Association in Ernie's name.