Luke Lukens

Luke Lukens was born in Delaware County, PA to Mable B Gettz Lukens and Fraiser LaVere Lukens. He was an only child whose father passed away when he was 12. He started working at age 13, and at 16 he joined the Monoa Volunteer Fire Department. He was fascinated by fire stations his entire life. When he was 18, he left PA and drove to the West Coast on an adventure. In Portland, Oregon he met his future wife but then returned to the East Coast. He joined the Army and was stationed at Ft Lewis, WA. He didn't waste time looking for the girl of his dreams again and married, J. Yvonne Porter in 1949. They had 68 wonderful years together.

They had three children, David, Denise, and Cynthia, who grew up in the Binnsmead neighborhood of SE Portland. Luke valued hard work and often worked 2 jobs. After he retired from Portland Wire and Iron as Plant Manager, he started painting houses with his good friend Joe Smith. He was a brilliant investor and cautious spender. He spent many hours teaching his children and grandchildren the value of a nickel. He loved fishing at Lake Billy Chinook with his friends and family. He was a reserved man who valued his privacy and loved his forested home and kept it in pristine condition. He was a treasure trove of knowledge and could sit for hours discussing and fixing all that was wrong in the world. He was a man in charge, could fix anything, always interested in learning new things, and was the world's greatest listener.

After caring for the love of his life for about 12 years, she passed just 2 years ago. He fought a valiant battle to live alone and keep up his house and yard. He followed the stock market on the internet every day and never missed his newspapers. He usually read a book a day, and kept up with the news and the lives of his children and their families. He always had a goal to reach, and his final goal was to pass at home, surrounded by family. He told us he never thought he would live past 43 and every year he extended his goal and made it to 91 with his beautiful mind still performing perfectly. He reached his goal, passing away at home, with class and dignity with his family holding his hand.

He will be missed forever by his family: David Lukens (Megan), Denise Lukens (Keith), Cynthia Lukens Long (Les); grandchildren Erik, Sarah, Lars, Travis, Bailey, Jacque and Kayle; great grandchildren Dylan, Daphne, Liam, Jasper and Henry.