Kirk Christensen

Kirk Douglas Christensen passed away May 16, 2019, in Colfax, Wash., from complications of acute pancreatitis. He is survived by his wife, Lisa; children, Annika and Erik; brothers, Randy (wife Lindy) and Bob of the Seattle area; sister-in-law Lydia (husband John) Kaempf, their children Sam, and Charlie Kaempf of Portland, Ore .; in-laws, Clif and Sharon Ross of Port Townsend, Wash; brother-in-law Matthew (wife Jill) Ross and their children, of Boerne, Texas.

A service to honor and celebrate his life will be held at 1 pm on July 18, 2019, at Onecho Bible Church with a reception to follow. He will be interned at Colfax Cemetery in a family service, and some of his ashes will be spread in Lake Chelan and the Puget Sound.

The third son of Raymond W and Corrine R (Olsen), Kirk was born March 2, 1952, in Seattle, Wash. Kirk was schooled in Ballard, graduating high school in 1970. He earned an Associates degree from Edmonds Community College. He had many different jobs throughout his life - machinist, journeyman mold maker, Fred Meyer management team and, probably most suited to him, toy salesman for Kenner Toys where he earned Salesman of the Year, in 1978. He retired from Boeing, where he was a highly skilled machinist, after he became ill in 1999.

Kirk was a man of many varied interests, most involving vehicles with engines that went fast. His greatest love was boating on Lake Chelan, where he spent his childhood summers, and Puget Sound. He was a people person and could find something to talk about with everyone. He had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh and make others laugh with his stories and songs. He was a perfectionist and always had time to do things right. Following in his father's footsteps, he was a proud lifetime member of the Genesis Masonic Lodge of Edmonds, Wash., a member of Whitman Masonic Lodge of Pullman and of the El Katif Shriners and the Whitman County Shriners. He was a past member of the Colfax Rotary. He proudly served as a volunteer policeman for the city of Lynnwood, Wash. Although illness plagued him for the last 20 years of his life, he was a strong, fighting Danish Viking, a wonderful family man and an inspiration to many.

Our family is grateful for everyone in the community of Colfax for their loving embrace of Kirk and our family. Thank you for the excellent, compassionate care provided by Dr. Singh and all at WMG, the kind people at WHMC and Whitman Rehab Center. Many thanks to our special friends Michael, Audrey and John Largent, Scott and Nancy Landon, and The Whitman County Shriner's. We will all miss Kirk terribly, but are thankful for the end of his suffering. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Shriner's Children's Hospital, or become a blood donor to honor the many selfless donors who helped Kirk have many more years of life.