Elmer Roy Sjodin

Elmer Roy Sjodin passed away peacefully on June 11, 2014. He was blessed to leave this world in the comfort of his home, with family by his side. He was dearly loved, and shared his love of family and God openly and often.

Roy was born on July 25, 1924, in Hoogdal, Washington. He was one of ten children born to Hans and Hulda, and was the last sibling to pass away. He graduated from Sedro Woolley High School, and stayed to work on the family farm. He tried to enlist in all branches of service, but was declared 4F because of his asthma. In February, 1946, after the war was over, he was drafted into the Army, and left two weeks before his brother, Danny, came home. Roy received heavy equipment training in the Army, which would lead him to his life-long career as a mechanic and service manager.

Roy met and pursued the love of his life, Dorothy Mae Kammerer, at the Cook Road Dance Hall, and they were married on January 12, 1952. They had three girls, and lived in the house they built together in Mount Vernon, Washington until moving to Seattle in 1965, where Roy accepted a job as Service Manager at Clyde Equipment Company.

Roy lived his life with honesty and integrity, demonstrating respect, loyalty, hard work and humility, and he passed these values on to his family. He had high expectations of himself and others, and wasn't hesitant to speak his mind, but was also very kind and gentle. Roy could build and fix practically anything. He was a mechanic, inventor, carpenter, craftsman, and creative problem solver. He had a saying - the first machine is sold by the sales department, the service department sells the rest. He used this as a foundation for how he lived his life.

Roy and Dorothy loved to dance, and were glorious to watch - they would twirl in each other's arms dancing the Schottische and the Hambo. They did practically everything together and in synch - archery, travelling and working side by side to build and remodel their homes. They loved to camp, and their grandchildren have many precious memories of camping and fishing with their Grandpa and Grandma - great times in tents and trailers, roasting marshmallows and hotdogs, and listening to Grandpa's stories that always had a punch line and usually a moral. He was a very positive person, and his smile and blue eyes made us all share in his happiness.

Roy is survived by his wife, Dorothy, and three daughters, Sandy Crispien (Larry), Karen Boze (Mike) and Lori Klebeck (Jack), seven grandchildren (Aimee, TJ, Elizabeth, Erin, Shannon, Kelly and Maggie) and two great-grandchildren (Logan and Jaxson.)