Joseph McDonald

1931 - 2024

My father Joesph McDonald (Joe, Joe Lee, Grampa Joe) passed away on June 23, 2024 just shy of his 93rd birthday (born August 15, 1931). He was born and raised in Bremerton, Washington by his parents Joe (Senior) and Ida (Finholm) McDonald. He always had found memories of growing up. Times were a little different then and the stories I enjoyed most were times he spent on his grandfather’s farm (Leander Finholm) with his sister Karen. He also had tall tales about how he and the other boys in the neighborhood would simply raid their parent’s pantry, grab a blanket and fishing gear, and go camping. They simply walked out of town and into the woods.

I think the best way to describe my father would be to say he was a modern-day renaissance man. In addition to enjoying the outdoors, he was a sailor, a sports car driver, a politician, an entrepreneur, a restauranter, a tavern owner, a businessman, a painter, a musician, an author of novels, short stories and poems, a gardener, an accomplished racket player (tennis, squash & badminton) not to mention an excellent dancer (or so I’m told). He was never afraid of learning. While not well, he could speak a few languages. He was also someone who enjoyed good wine, good food, and friends and family to share them with.

For me, as a young man growing up, I remember sitting at the dinner table after the plates had been cleared and hearing the stories my father, my uncle (John McDonald) and my grandfather, Joe Senior, would tell over, well, one more glass of wine, or maybe two. This instilled in me the same joy in, not only hearing, but telling the stories. In reading this I hope you’ll enrich his history by adding your stories to this site. For him, that would be the greatest gift of all.