Samuel Hunter Eng
February 25, 1950 - April 14, 2011
Obituary
Hunter passed on at age 61. He was born in Hudson, NY in February 1950 to Fred and Ruth Eng. He was preceded in death by his parents and brothers Peter and Fred Jr., and sister Laura. He graduated from Thomas More School in New Hampshire, and attended the University of Washington, where he earned his BS degree in Construction Engineering. He also earned a MS in Civil Engineering from Stanford University. For Hunter, skiing was not just a hobby; it was a religion. He moved from New York to Washington in 1971, because ‘The best skiers are all from Crystal Mountain.’ He worked as a professional ski patroller at his beloved Crystal Mountain and was an original member of the infamous Sunnyside Sliders. Recently he was inducted into the US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame as one of the pioneers of freestyle skiing. He heroically fought liver cancer for two years, never letting it slow him down. His favorite saying was, ‘If I didn’t know I had cancer, I wouldn’t know I had cancer!’ Hunter was always the fastest one down the mountain, and once again he beat us all, this time to his final resting place. Ski in peace. A loving husband and father, Hunter is survived by his wife of 36 years, Chris, daughters Laura, Elissa and Wylie, and brothers Michael and Tony. A Celebration of Life for friends and family will be held Saturday April 23rd at 2:30 pm at the Mercer Island Beach Club, 8326 Avalon Drive, Mercer Island, WA. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance directed to Dr. Edward H. Lin http://www.seattlecca.org/scca-make-a-donation.cfm or Swedish Medical Center Foundation directed to Dr. Vivek K. Mehta https://community.swedish.org/SSLPage.aspx?pid=316.
No words could say it. He was one of a kind never to exsist again. I am honored to have known him during my years at Crystal Mnt.
Mike Genteman
As a physician assistant at SCCA I had the privledge to help care for Hunter. Rarely have I met a man with more courage and resolve to live life to the fullest in the face of a devistating diagnosis. He and Chris became members of our family here. It was an honor to be a part of his care.
Barbara and I offer our sincere condolences to Hunter’s loving wife Chrissy and their children and family on Hunter’s passing. He was a man who was a positive, uplifting and heroic individual who leaves the world a better place for all who knew him. He will be missed but never forgotten!
in love, John and Barbara Schmitt
I was thinking of Hunter this morning and decided to tell a small story of the first year of Hunter on ski patrol. I was his room mate at the dorm and a fellow ski patrol, often being his partner in the mornings for early avalanche control. One morning 6:30 AM we were out on top of Snorting Elk bowl and doing our morning rounds. Hunter wanted to trim the cornice and ski the slope without first throwing dynamite to stabilize the slope. I convinced him to wait while I threw a quarter pound charge into the top of the slope. He acquiesced, I threw the charge and all of Snorting Elk bowl discharged deep taking out two and three foot firs in the valley below. We were told we could be heard screaming with excitement in the parking lot far below. Hunter said the event changed his life around to want to live. I saw him early the next spring and he thanked me for preventing what would almost certainly been his early demise. You were a great human Hunter!