Ralph John Berger

Ralph John Berger, affectionately known by many as Junior, was born in Seattle on March 18, 1928. He was born to Ralph C Berger and Bessie Shirey. Ralph's brothers Jack, Clayton and Bill have preceded him in death. He is survived by siblings Nancy, Betty and Bob.

Ralph met Karleen Martin in 1943 through her brothers Marion and Bob. They married in September of 1947. They lived in Ballard for a few years and bought their little house east of the Blue Ridge area in 1959. There they raised their three children Donna, Jim and Kathy.

Ralph worked for P. Salvino Transport, as a driver for many years. His usual route was Seattle to Eugene, but often it could be from Bellingham to Eugene or Salem on a daily basis.

Ralph was a lover of the outdoors. As a young man he played football, baseball and even won a trophy in a marbles competition. As he got older he loved to hunt, and fish. He hunted every year, for deer and elk, even going to Canada to hunt moose. He also loved to fish going to Alaska and Vancouver Island to visit Herb. Often he and the family would camp at Twin Harbor State Park near Westport where they also did a lot of clamming.

For several years he and Karleen owned one boat or another, really enjoying their time going through the San Juan's or up to Canada fishing along the way. One favorite stop was at Poulsbo, where he once met John Wayne at the bakery buying donuts. He told us that 'The Duke' was a big man with a big handshake, but very cordial.

Ralph also loved to Bowl and was a league player for many years at Leilani Lanes.

When the CB craze became so popular, he had a home base installed. Being a trucker it was second nature to him, and I distinctly remember him calling Karleen as soon as he pulled into the yard at Salvino's and letting her know when to have dinner on the table. Ralph and Karleen belonged to a CB club along with many friends for several years.

Along with the CB's, it was Honda Gold Wing. He and Karleen would go for rides with friends, traveling all over the northwest. A favorite trip was over the North Cascades.

Ralph was always good and generous with family as well as neighbors. He brought everyone he knew toilet paper, paper towels and some canned goods. He was also a barterer. He loved getting things for Free! Didn't really matter what it was, he loved free stuff! He figured he would have a use for it or he could trade for something else. The wheels were always turning! He was also a collector of stuff, what didn't fit in the house went out in the shed or over to the property. I really think all three of his kids also inherited that trait. They love stuff.

As years went by, going over to the trailer became Ralph's destination resort. He loved going over the pass for 3 or 4 days every weekend if he could, to feed his deer, the visit with friends and the past few years to build a rock wall. I think Ralph was happier and more comfortable at the trailer than anywhere else. He adopted several deer and made sure they had water, feed, and apples. He could actually call them in to his property, he almost had them eating out of his hand. He would have never hunted these particular deer, they were friends. Several times, especially as his house taxes got higher, he wished he could move over to the trailer. Of course, it would have been impossible.

Ralph has had some major health problems the last few years, but with the constant help of Karleen his life was lengthened by her loving care. He really hated being diabetic, as he loved food, especially desert. He hated it when his kidneys started failing him, that diet was worse than the diabetic diet. He was not very happy when he had to have his spleen out a year ago, but he did bounce back for a time after that surgery. Were it not for Karleen and her vigilance, he would not have survived. Even Karleen though, could not prevent the tumor from forming. He was diagnosed with central nervous system non-hodgkins lymphoma, an inoperable malignant mass the size of an egg in the right side of his brain late in February. He really tried hard to fight it, hoping that he could once more persevere, but it was not to be. He body was just too tired. He died very peacefully on Friday, April 3, 2009 with Karleen and Donna at his side.

Did you know that Ralph was still chopping wood and riding his Nordic track? He had just turned 81 years old.

In honor of Ralph, his son Jim, grandson Jimi, granddaughter Laurie and grandson-in-law Lawrence decided they wanted to do something special. Then plan on riding in the Live Strong Challenge Seattle, a 100 mile road bike ride on June 21, 2009. Their team? Ralphies Roadies. They are working hard to raise $3000 to for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. If you would like to donate to help people like Ralph, please find their webpage , Ralphies Roadies @ http://seattle09.livestrong.org