Louis William Roebke
April 20, 1930 - June 10, 2016
Obituary
Louis Roebke died Friday, June 10th at home of congestive heart failure. Lou was born April 22, 1930 in Seattle, son of Louis Roebke and Berenice Brown Roebke, originally from Holton, KS. His family lived in University District and later Windemere; he was a student at University Heights and Laurelhurst Elementary Schools and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1948. He was a graduate of the University of Washington in 1953 where he was a member of Theta Chi fraternity and served as manager of the varsity crew team. An Army ROTC cadet at Washington, upon graduation Lou entered military service and was stationed in California and Hawaii on active duty before returning to Seattle in 1956, continuing his service in the Army Reserves. From 1957 until his death, he was Sr. Vice President of Investment Securities and Principal for Martin Nelson and Company of Seattle. Lou was involved in Young Republicans and through them met Lorna Coe on election night in 1964. They married in June of 1966; they lived in Seattle where they created a family, and enjoyed their house and garden, as well as power boating in the waters of Washington and British Columbia. Lou enjoyed gardening and reading, and was an avid supporter of Husky Football, both at home and on the road. He was active in the Rotary Club of Ballard as well as the Seattle Yacht Club and the Rainier Club.
Lou is survived by his sons Karl and Frederic (Kristina) as well as grandchildren William and Lydia. His wife, Lorna Coe Roebke and his sister, Martha Rose Hedgcock predeceased him in 2010. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be sent to Friends of the Children of King County (friendskc.org) or to University Presbyterian Church (upc.org) or to the charity of your choice.
Services will be held for Lou on Monday July 18th. Burial services will be at 11AM at Acacia Memorial Park; 14951 Bothell Way NE Seattle. Memorial Service at 1PM at University Presbyterian Church; 4540 15th Ave NE Seattle. All are welcome.
Remembering and honoring Louie as a gentle man and true ””Gentleman.”.
I had the privilege to meet Lou at the Rotary Club of Ballard. He was a friendly guy. I enjoyed his talk about being manager of the UW Varsity Crew. He opened up his house and beautiful garden for us to enjoy for our annual Club Picnic.
He generously gave back to the community through Rotary including establishing a fund that will continue to benefit our community into the future. Thank you Lou
James C. Raptis, Rotary Club of Ballard, President.
I enjoyed seeing Lou every week at our Rotary Club meetings. His warmth and friendliness were contagious. His love of community is inspiring! Thank you Lou!
Our thoughts and prayers are with you.