Jack Rolfe Whitnall

Dad was an amazing man. No doubt about it. He was born in Puyallup, WA on February 9, 1916. When he was 4 years old, he came with his Mom and Dad, Alice and Rolfe (Bob) Whitnall to Yakima. The house they purchased is the one that Dad loved and lived in for most of his life.

When Dad was in his early 20s, he drove an ambulance in Yakima. He shared stories about it and how scared he was at times because there were no vaccines for polio, infections and other maladies that plagued that time and era.

His Dad was an avid photographer and passed that genetic makeup to my Dad. I think Dad was born with a camera in his hands. He was taking photos from the time he was very young.

When he joined the Army, he became a sharpshooter and was destined for the front lines in World War II, but as he was being transferred to the European theater, the troops were asked if anyone would be interested in typing in the headquarters to General Eisenhower. Dad's typing skills were as sharp as his aim so he volunteered and his life took a turn that probably saved and directed his life. He sold a carton of cigarettes for a camera and proceeded to document war torn Europe via film. While in France he met my Mom and they had a whirlwind, war time romance. Hundreds of photos later and two signed photos of General Eisenhower and many love letters and a proposal to my Mom and her “yes”, he left Europe ready to start his married life and his photography business.

Back home he and Mom started a family: two children, Jackie and David. Photos, photos, photos. Old photos, new photos, accident photos, wedding photos. That was Dad's panache. He took photos of injury accidents for the Yakima City police and for the State Patrol and for the fire department in his early marriage. He had a police scanner that he ran all night waiting for the next “call”. He had the phone by his bed in case he was called to take photos of an accident scene in the middle of the night. Asked why he did that kind of work, he simply said, “it's interesting.” Wedding pictures weren't his forte although he was good at anything he took a picture of. His accident photographic expertise led him into the business of forensic photography. He blossomed at 50 and started his own business of Photogram metrics. He was an innovator. He traveled and worked for all of the major car companies all across the U.S. to reconstruct accident scenes with his concept of grid photography. He was in his element. He was brilliant.

All of his life he was surrounded by beautiful music, since his Mom and sisters were accomplished pianists. He purchased an electric organ early in his marriage and self-taught himself how to play it and enjoyed playing duets with the family and friends who played the piano.

Dad also collected photographs to go with the ones his Dad took. The historical photograph collection portrayed a great deal of surrounding cities within the Yakima Valley. He donated copy negatives to the Museum and they have shown these photos all over Yakima. He was interested and interesting. He was very well read. He purchased one of the first desk top computers, and taught himself how to use it. He was always on the go. He was a member of the Audubon Society. On their many outings they would make him the leader. The only problem was, he would go astray and leave the group and travel the back roads with his AWD vehicle of choice. Eventually he would meet up with them again and with another one of his road adventure tales.

When we were young, he would take our family and neighborhood kids out in his Willie's jeep to travel the backroads of Yakima County, 4 wheeling. The neighborhood kids loved him. They couldn't wait for the next adventure. When he was older his Grandson Uriah was his companion on many journeys and now Uriah is here to share those adventures with his kids and our family. The legacy lives on.

His life was so interesting and so varied. So much to do, so little time.

I will miss the talks, the sharing of the new techy stuff that he just loved to learn about. I will miss calling him and talking to him about the excitement that was happening just around the corner, with our family, our friends, our work and our lives. I will miss finding out and sharing “what's new” in the camera world and how it can make our lives more interesting and exciting. He loved a good photo. He was my Dad and I loved him. I will miss him. I will miss his mind, his ability to grasp everything and not be judgmental.

Dad was so proud of his son, David and his vocation as an anesthesia technician at Harborview Medical Center; and recent achievement of a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business. Dave inherited Dad's love of film and camera. He inherited Dad's sense of humor and quick wit. Dave and Dad had a unique relationship that will be greatly missed.

What a legacy Dad left for us all. How blessed we were to have him in our lives.

While his memory was fading he still always had a smile and was quick to use it. Even when he had to be confined to a nursing home. When you would smile he would smile back and it would show his inner spirit, where happiness was just a smile away. We talked about God and Jesus in the end and he told me he was “always a believer” and was relieved and glad to be reminded that there is a future in our passing from our earthly bonds.

He leaves with very heavy hearts, his daughter Jackie and his son David. He leaves his grandson, Uriah and wife Kelly and his three great-grandkids Kolton, Gavin, and Lilly. He leaves his granddaughter Bethany and her husband Jason and great-grandkids, Isaac and Matthew and he leaves his grandson Sam. He leaves David's wife Jeri and his granddaughters Jodi and Debbie. He leaves his wife of 61 years, Les Whitnall. He is also survived by his sister “Joon” June Holmes and her husband Bill. He was preceded in death by his sister Betty Simmerer.

He is irreplaceable. He was unique. His presence will be truly missed.

We love you Dad, Grandpa, Great-Grandpa and bro'.

A Memorial service was held at Keith & Keith Ninth Avenue Chapel, Friday, August 31, 2007 at 4:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Alzheimer's Research Foundation c/o Keith & Keith Funeral Home, 902 W. Yakima Ave., Yakima, WA 98902. To share a memory of Jack, visit www.mem.com.

A special thank you to Dawn, R.N. at Good Samaritan Health Care Center and Josie, R.N. for their commitment to my Dad and for keeping the family informed and involved with every aspect of Dad's care. You both deserve medals.