Loren Phillip Day

I was born on May 16, 1942, number ten of twelve children. My father and mother had a café in Kenmore, WA from 1937-1949. In 1949 my dad died of stomach cancer. The restaurant was closed. There were six of us at home and we all had to pull our own to survive. I did yard work, paper routes, and then from 1959 to 1962 I worked at Zesto Drive-in, in Kenmore. I was flunking a lot of my classes until one of my teachers had a talk with me. I made up all my F’s and was the first boy in our family to graduate. I joined the Marine Corp in 1962 and married Carolyn Staples. We ended up with three girls. The Marine Corp sent me to Okinawa for overseas duty. Leaving my family was hard to do. We got out of the service in 1968. I went to work for Boeing as a welder working on all static fatigue planes 747-777 and helped build Boeing boats, the jet foil and hydro foil. I retired in 2000.

I divorced in 1969 and never figured to marry again. I met and married Gail Halbackken in 1977. She passed away in 2008 after many years of love, fun, traveling and enjoying our property in Darrington on the Sauk River.

I raced a modified Sprint, open wheel race car at Sky Valley Speedway and Evergreen Speedway from 1975-1986. I was a long-time member of the Shoreline Historical Museum being a board member in 1989.

My biggest claim to fame is I am in the book "In America" by Eve Arnold on page 109. About 1983 she was photographing at Boeing in Everett. I was outside working when she asked if she could take pictures. I said “sure”. My wife was watching TV when she saw that Eve Arnold was being interviewed and there was my picture on TV. For the record, I was not an aircraft painter, I was a welder.

I came close to losing everything a few times, but I feel I had a blessed and good life. I am debt free, with extended family including 166 nieces and nephews. The Lord has taken good care of me. I am now with Him.