Gary Dean Longworth
December 14, 1948 - August 30, 2014
Obituary
GARY DEAN LONGWORTH
Gary Dean Longworth passed away at the age of 65 on Saturday, August 30that St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way, WA. Gary was born on December 14th, 1948 in Lima, OH to Donald and Bettie Longworth. Gary is preceded in death by his parents and sister Gay Lyn Longworth. He is survived by his wife Irma, brother Brett Longworth, sisters Janice Stevens, Karen LeRoy, his children Don (Nikki) Longworth Brianna Longworth (Luis Micheri), and his grandchildren Azure Longworth and Jameson Micheri.
Gary was a warm husband, he cared for his children deeply, and was a wonderful, loving, caring, dedicated, and easy going man who would do anything to help out and make someone happy. Gary grew up in an Air Force family and was fortunate enough to travel all over because of the nature of the military lifestyle. He was a great brother to his siblings. Being in Hawaii as a teen, he loved the water, snorkeling, surfing, and enjoyed the company of his friends and family. He had the upmost respect to serve his country. He naturally served in the Air Force as a Staff Sergeant. He is a veteran of the Vietnam War and was honorably discharged on May 2nd, 1974. This paved the way to his career working in the Aerospace industry. A man dedicated to his craft with strong work ethic, he worked in Aerospace as a civilian for 39 years.
He moved to California, then soon after serving met his wife Irma at Glendale College. He was enamored by her charm and with his persistence and gentle nature, he won her heart over. They were married in Catalina Island on July, 23rd, 1979 and recently celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary in Kauai. They welcomed their children with great joy and had many special moments, from spending time at Warner Springs Ranch, camping throughout California, and traveling. They finally settled in Seattle in 2006. He loved his children, always took them out on day trips, would go explore different restaurants, and instilled in them a sense of pride and joy for family. Gary was a very hardworking man. He loved working for Boeing as an Aircraft Maintenance Mechanic on the Experimental Flight Test Team. He enjoyed rhythm and blues, classic rock, and even got to see the Rolling Stones play at Altamont in 1969. He also enjoyed collecting quirky vintage gadgets, tools for his well-stocked toolbox, classic lunch pails, owning vintage Volkswagens, and with his most recent toy a Thunderbird he would cruise around in on sunny days with his wife. He adored his grandchildren and showered them with love and gifts. They were his pride and joy. He will be missed forever in our hearts. His legacy will continue through his children and grandchildren.
The viewing will be on Monday, Sept., 8th from 2pm – 5pm.
Bonney-Watson (253) 253-839-7317 http://bonneywatson.com/
1535 SW Dash Pt. Rd.
Federal Way, WA 98023
A celebration of life will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 9th from 11am 12pm
Calvary Lutheran Church (253) 839-0344 http://calvary-elca.org/
2415 S. 320th St.
Federal Way, WA 98003
The burial will begin promptly at 1:00pm.
Mountain View Cemetery (253) 931-3028 www.mtviewcementaryauburn.com
2020 Mountain View Drive
Auburn, WA 98001
A reception will be following the burial.
Calvary Lutheran Church
2415 S. 320th St.
Federal Way, A 98003
(253) 839-0344
http://calvay-elca.org
If you would like to send flowers, please contact:
Fran’s Flowers (206) 878-0506
If you would like to make a donation in Gary’s memory, please donate to the Salvation Army or Operation Smile.
My dear brother in law I will miss you forever. You made my sister happy and your love for her made her a strong woman and a loving wife and mother. You were special to my family. Now you are In the hands of our Lord in peace.
My sincere condolences to you and your entire family Irma. We will be thinking of you and the rest of the family.
Sending you lots of love.
He sounds like a wonderful man and I’m so sorry we never had the opportunity to meet. Know that you and your loved ones are in my thoughts and prayers.
Noelita
My dearest Uncle Gary. My heart is saddened by your loss but I am such a blessed woman to have had you in my life. We just saw you 3 weeks ago and amazed me that you had not aged. You’re a timeless treasure in my heart and will forever love you. Thank you for the great memories as a child and for always making us feel part of your family, a part of you.
To my cousins and sweet Aunt – May God give you the strength and comfort to overcome this difficult time. You were very blessed to have had such a wonderful soul as a father and husband.
Dear Tia Irma and family,
I am so sorry for your loss. He was a great man. You will never find a man like him in the world. Even though he passed away always remember you are not alone. You have your brothers and sisters, your nieces and nephews, and you have Matteo, Alyssa, Brandon, Lucas, Gabriel, and me. You are never alone. I love you and I am here for you.
Uncle Gary – we will always remember how wonderful you were. We will remember you as a great person.
Uncle Gary
I remember when I went to visit you last year, I was very excited to see you when you got home from work. You were a really nice guy.
Tia Irma – Sorry for your loss. I am praying for you. See you soon.
Gary, you will be deeply missed. You were the love of Irma’s life and your entire family. You will live on in all of our hearts and your spirit will surround all of us. Love and Blessings to the entire family. IN LOVE and LIGHT, Ron and Debbie Binford
Dear Irma:
The Aguilar family is sending you our condolences for the loss of your husband. But we know that God, will send you comfort and resignation and give you a lot of strength to continue your destiny.
Gary, will never die, as long as we remember him, the way he was, kind, considerate and sincere. We are going to miss him a lot.
With much love,
The Aguilar family
Gary,
You will be missed so much. You were the kindest and sweetest of all of us. Our memories will stay with us forever. We know that you have gone to join those before you, Mom, Daddy, Aunt Alma and Gay Lyn. They are with you now. We know that you are with our Lord and Savior. You touched so many lives while you were here with us. We know that all of us will carry a part of you with them and will remember the man we were proud to call brother. Gary, we love you and will miss you. We know that you will be shinning down on us from heaven and that one day we will all be together once again but for now we grieve for our loss and the loss to your family as they miss their Husband, Friend, Father and Grandfather.
We love you Gary.
My dear uncle Gary was a man with such a kind heart and spirit that no one could ever forget him. We haven so many fond memories of him being a fixture if our family that it will be difficult to forget that he is no longer with us in this physical world. One of my earliest memories of him was that he bought me a coke at Glendale College on a hot day. He also gave me my 1st job at his VW store. Most recently, I saw him on Kauai and telling him that he looks just as I remember him from so many years ago.
I pray that his memory will never be forgotten and that all of you recieve some peace from this small expression of our condolences. Our hearts & prayers go out to the entire Longworth family.
With sympathy in the loss of your dear husband. Hoping you find comfort in the love of family and friends. Thoughts and prayers be with you.
From the staff of Twin Lakes Vision Clinic:
Dr. Souza
Laurie M.
Betsy C.
Roxanne C.
To our beloved Cousins Irma, Donald, and Brianna,
Words cannot express the heartfelt sadness we feel for all of you. Gary’s kind soul and giving spirit touched so many and will never be forgotten.
May the comfort of God help you during this difficult time. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.
With Deepest Sympathy,
Fred and Irene Gonzalez
Dear Irma and family,
Our prayers are with you in sympathy for your loss. It is so evident that Gary was especially loved and a kind heart. I’m including one of my favorite poems in case it can help in some way.
Love and Blessings,
Jacob and Laurie
Dearest Irma,
Words cannot express how very sorry we are for your loss.
Gary was a special man and he loved you and his children very much. We hope that knowing he will be in a great place in heaven gives you and your children comfort.
We will pray for him. The people that met him were very blessed.
Dear Irma and family,
Sorry to hear about your beloved husband Gary. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. Treasure the wonderful memories and god be with you.
Love,
Ann
and Sports Medicine PT staff
Condolences to the Longworth family. May Jehovah the “God of Comfort” bring you comfort and peace at this difficult time (2 Corinthians 1:3 & 4). Your family are in our prayers.
My deepest sympathies and condolences to the Longworth family. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
I am very sad to hear of Gary’s passing. We went to Radford High School in Honolulu at the same time – he was a year ahead of me. I remember we lived close to each other on Hickam, AFB. I liked to talk with him about surfing and the various surf spots. I tried to reach out to him over the years but never could locate home before the internet. Looking back, I wish I’d ran into him while I was in the Air Force. He was a good friend and one of the nicest people I’ve ever known.