Kipp Marvin Walter
June 8, 1964 - February 12, 2017
Obituary
Kipp Marvin Walter was born June 8, 1964 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He moved to Washington state with his parents when he was just 2 months old. He grew up in the Bellevue and Kirkland areas and graduated from Juanita High School in 1982. In his youth he was an avid water and snow skier. Shortly after graduation he joined the US Navy, completed basic training in San Diego, CA and served aboard ship in the south Pacific from Hawaii to Australia to Korea.
Kipp loved boats and learned to sail when 10 years old. Growing up he was active in the Sea Scouts program and learned to race on a Hobie 16 with his father. He participated in many family sailing outings on Lake Washington and in the San Juan Islands.
After his Navy service he returned to Kirkland and started a career working at Boeing which spanned more than 31 years. He was never far from sailing and soon purchased his own 37 foot sailboat. In 2001 he found his “dream boat” Chalupa, a Formosa 51, and moved his life full time aboard ship. Other activities included white water kayaking and dirt bike riding.
Kipp lost his mother Marsha when he was 13, his grandparents and cousin, Jeff, in recent years, as well as his first wife.
He is survived by his infant son Corbin, and Corbin’s half brother Evan, and their mother Arlene Thiessen, his father Marvin and stepmother Rosemary, his sister Kristi Jones and her husband Tim as well as by a large and loving extended family of aunts, uncles, and cousins,his former wife Patty, and many other valued friends from the Boeing and boating communities that he loved.
Kipp passed on from this life, peacefully, in his sleep on February 12, 2017. His life will be celebrated at a gathering on Tuesday, February 21, at 4:00 p.m. at Bonney-Watson Federal Way at 1535 SW Dash Point Road. His ashes will be mingled with the waters of the San Juan Islands at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift in Kipp’s memory to his 2-month-old son, Corbin Kipp Walter. An account has been set up for Corbin and will be managed by Kipp’s sister, Kristi Jones, as executor of his estate.
To contribute:
Login to your PayPal account and select “Send and Request”
Next select “Send to Friends and Family in the US”
Enter Kristi’s email address: kanne2012@hotmail.com<mailto:kanne2012@hotmail.com>.
PayPal will send you a receipt.
If you do not wish to use PayPal, or have questions, contact Kristi by email.
Missing Kipp and looking forward to seeing family next week.
Kipp, you were the best man I ever knew. I will always be grateful for the unconditional love and happiness you gave my mom, and what an outstanding father you were. You instilled a love of sailing into Kipper, and it’s his dream to follow in your footsteps. Your positive attitude, sense of humor, and laughter made you a magnet to people, so many loved you. You will never be forgotten, I hope you know how profoundly you were loved, and how very much you will be missed. We were better for having you in our lives, and there will forever be a hole in our hearts.
Grandpa Kipp, you were always the life of the party! Many a time we would go on little walks around the marina and soon you would find someone to drink and chat with for the night, whether you knew them or not, you always made friends everywhere you went, i honestly cant remember a time you didn’t have a smile and a friend to talk to! No matter what you always had a good vibe about you, thank you for being one of the most inspirational people in my life and always being there to help! you will be dearly missed and remembered even more so!
Gona miss you buddy. The place will never be the same without you.
Kipp you will be missed by all your team (ship) mates at Boeing.
Fair Winds and a Following Sea forever.
Captain Kip invited me to be a part of his crew last summer. I had never been sailing before. Kip was a great friend . He will be missed by us all. Till we catch up in the wind my friend.
We’ve had alot of laughs over the last 30 years. I am honored to have shared some great times with you. Kipp you were one of a kind ! May God always smile with you. Lori B
Kipp, thank you for all the great laughs and good times. Thank you for many years of service to the Boeing Company. I am going to miss you. May you forever have the wind at your back and Sun in your face. Happy Sailing my friend.
We have been a dear friend to Kipp for many years , meeting him the First time on “Chalupa” We grew to know and love him. With his sailing knowledge and love for the Ocean, we always learned something from him. After buying our boat ” Natural High” the sister ship to “Chalupa”, he assisted us in bringing her north from California to the Puget Sound , and had some boating trips after returning to Puget Sound with him on “Chalupa. ” He inspired us to follow our dream and we set sail in August 2016 heading to Mexico with a plan to someday meet up with Kipp when he retired.. Kipp has been a true inspiration to us and was always full of fun and laughter. We will hold him close in our hearts and will miss him dearly. ” Fair winds and following seas our buddy! ” Sail On”.
I first met Kipp when he was dating Patty, prior to their marriage. I knew right away he was a great guy, a really great sense of humor and very sensitive, and kind. I am really sorry to hear of his passing, God Bless you Kipp. You are going to be missed, enjoy playing with the Angels…
Kippy I miss you so much! I was blessed to have you as a close friend for over 30 years. Thanks for all the great times we shared. I love you so much my dear friend, RIP.
So sorry to hear of Kipp’s passing. He was always upbeat and a pleasure to work with during our days on the 757 Aileron team. During my rare visits to CMC, Kipp would greet me with a firm handshake and that big smile. Always full of enthusiasm and several good stories. Rest in Peace My Friend.
Big Kipp has been a very big part of our lives and will be missed dearly. I will never forget his laugh and amazing heart toward everyone he met. We should all take a note from him and befriend all who come in our paths. He was a great man and father.
He will continue to be a ry of sunshine on all of us. Rest now Kipp, but know we will miss you
A prayer for my dear friend Kipp…
“Deep calls to deep at the sound of thy waterfalls;
All thy breakers and waves have rolled over me (you).
The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me (you) in the night.”
Indeed, Kipp was the most sincere, compassionate and loving man I knew. He was vibrant and full of passion and life. I have known Kipp for about 18 years. We met just a month after his first wife Julie had passed. I had the pleasure and honor of being the first to welcome him to our liveaboard community in Tacoma. We had much in common sailing, fishing and partying with many friends over the years. I loved you like a brother Kipp and will surely miss you all my days. God rest your soul and know that the love you had in your heart is what gives you victory over death for the eternal life that awaits you. RIP my friend.
Sorry for your loss. Such a surprise. Love, Sandie
You will be greatly missed Kipp. I’ve known you for 30 years, and I never ever saw you sad, or angry. You were always happy, smiling, laughing. I will miss your contagious laugh. You always made me smile. R.I.P. KIPP.
Have some very special memories with Kipp and Patty sailing and mooring in the Puget Sound.Your physical heart was weak but your spiritual heart was strong. Thank you for the memories and thank you for always being willing to help.
Captain,
You will Truly be missed. You always had a smile with a positive life, Sail on!!!
RIP Kipp…. I will remember our fun skiing adventures we had when we were in high school!!!! My deepest sympathy goes out to his family and everyone who knew him!!! So very sorry for your loss!!
You will be missed. I worked with you at Boeing in Auburn and Fredrickson. I remember meeting you and you were so nice. At the time, you and Patty had started dating and I was happy for you. Very friendly personality. So sorry to have you leave this earth so soon.
R.I.P. KIPP. WE MISS YOU, BUT WE KNOW YOU ARE SAILING INTO YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE. YOU ALWAYS HAD A GREAT SMILE. UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN! GOD BLESS YOU!
To Kipp’s family and friends we send our heartfelt sympathies. Even though we didn’t know Kipp personally we knew a lot about him though Kristi and Tim. When Kristi talked about him, you could see all the love she had for him.
R.I.P. Kipp
Chris and Kevin Mullane, Kristi’s sister and brother in law
Many good times on the water friend, only red sky at night from here on out bro.
Knowing Kip for almost 30 yrs. and all of the things he had been through he always had something positive ,good and funny to say. People like Kip are hard to come by. I feel I have been blessed to have been able to call him a friend. He ill be truly missed. God bless his family and prayers for you all.