On March 9, 2018, Jack Allen Roesberry, 68, of Redmond, WA, passed away from heart failure at the University of Washington Medical Center. He was an American citizen and spent several years working and traveling overseas.
Jack was a gentleman, empathetic, trustworthy, funny, fair, caring and considerate and of sharp wit. Those who knew Jack valued him for his love of continuous learning, voracious reading of science fiction and nonfiction. He adored his daughter, Jennifer, and made lasting friends around the world. To learn new skills, Jack would teach himself until he had mastered it. During his youth, he excelled in playing the French Horn and baseball and track.
Jack was born in King Hill, Idaho, on April 18, 1949, to George Ellis Roesberry and Delores Mae England. He and his two younger brothers grew up on a farm outside of Othello, WA. Jack’s two older brothers and three sisters were already away from home. In school he played catcher for the Babe Ruth Baseball League and was an avid runner. He graduated from Othello High School in 1967. In September 1967 Jack began his journey of further education at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, WA. After two years there, he transferred to the University of Washington in Seattle where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism.
After graduating, Jack, took a position at a radio station in Portland, OR. Jack then joined the U.S. Army and served for six years. During this time Jack married Sabine Biemer and they had a daughter, Jennifer. Jack returned to college and received a master’s of accounting and business management from Washington State University in 1985. He received his designation as a Certified Public Accountant in 1986.
In 1986, Jack began working for the U.S. government as an accountant for Defense Contract Audit Agency in Santa Barbara, CA. He then took the position of a Price Cost Analyst with the Air Force Plant Representative Office at Boeing in Kent, WA. He later Jack accepted a position with NATO, Airborne Early Warning and Control program located in The Netherlands where he became Chief Financial Officer. He lived in The Netherlands for 15 years and traveled across Europe. He was an avid golfer and golfed in England, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Tunisia and other countries.
He returned to the United States in 2006 and served as a supervisory financial management specialist for the Department of Defense. He was located at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, Mass., for three years. Jack moved to Bellevue, WA, where Jack held the position of price cost analyst for DOD’s Defense Contract Management Agency, Navy Special Emphasis Operations.
Jack and Ruth Delia were married in 2012. The married couple moved to Vicenza, Italy, where Jack took an overseas assignment as a contract specialist with the U.S. Army Contract Command for three years. They traveled around Europe together during this time, and enjoyed several visits by family and friends.
Jack retired in 2015, and he and Ruth returned to live in Redmond, WA, where he continued his lifelong learning with classes at Bellevue College, writing short stories, restoring antique golf clubs, and playing Pinochle with his friends at the Redmond Senior Center. Most recently he also took up woodworking.
Jack is survived by his wife, Ruth; his daughter, Jennifer; his brothers, Greg and Les; and sisters, Lois and Betty; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his mother and father and siblings Norma, Charles and Robert (Ellis). Memorial contributions may be made in Jack’s name to the American Heart Association.
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