Richard Patrick Sartain

Richard Patrick Sartain

Dick passed away November 22, 2008 at St. Peter Hospital, surrounded by family joined in prayer and singing one verse of his favorite hymn.
Dick was born August 22, 1922 in Pomeroy, to A.Q. and Margaret Sartain. At the age of ten, he moved to Spokane with his mother and brother. Dick graduated from Gonzaga High School in 1940. He attended Eastern Washington College on a football scholarship and in April, 1942, enlisted in the Marine Corps.
In 1943 he married Phyllis Throckmorton, his wife of 65 years.
As a Marine, Dick served in Saipan, Okinawa and China. He returned home to college at Eastern, graduating with a B.A. in Education in 1946. Dick taught and coached in Wilbur, Washington until 1950. That fall he went back to EWSC to complete his Master's degree.
The family moved to Washtucna where he was an elementary and high school principal and coach for six years. Around that time, he also worked for the US Forest Service as a Park Ranger. The family moved to Connell in 1957 where he was Director of Elementary Education for seven years. In 1964, Dick served as Superintendent of Rainier Schools for a year before moving to Olympia where he worked as the Director of the Neighborhood Youth Corps Poverty Program for three counties. In 1970 he became assistant superintendent of ESD 113, in charge of youth programs for nine counties.
Dick retired in 1982. His retirement was filled with golf and volunteer work, including the feeding program at the Olympia First Baptist Church.
Dick is survived by his wife, Phyllis; daughter, Susan (Keith) Pace, of Everett; son Rodney (Jill) Sartain, of Tumwater; eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
A celebration of Dick's life will be held Saturday December 6, 2008 at 2:00 p.m., at Olympia First Baptist Church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Olympia First Baptist Church Feeding Program or Olympia Safeplace.