Henry "Hank" Brooks

Henry is survived by his wife, Ella Louise, daughter Judy (Larry) Weaver, son Bill (Yvonne) Brooks, and niece Dede (Bob) Cuskelly, eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Hank is preceded in death by his beloved son, Steve (Staci) Brooks.

Henry led a full and wonderful life. He served in the US Navy from 1954 to 1958 and also served as a reserve for the Thurston County Sheriffs Department. He was extremely proud of all his children, his son Steve, a detective for the Lacey Police Department, Judy working in the family real-estate company and Bill in safety and security for Northshore School District. Henry himself, cared about his community and volunteered with the Jeep Patrol.

Henry was always busy experimenting with different projects in the shop. These ranged from welding, to fixing up trucks, to winemaking and more. He threw himself into his interests with 100% commitment and valued the same trait in others. There is nothing Henry couldn’t fix, make or improve. His years working at the chip plant found him creating machines and supervising their use on a regular basis. Perhaps the personality traits that stand out most about Henry were his friendliness and willingness to help anyone with anything at any time. He never met a stranger he wouldn’t help and made friends with everyone he met, something he passed down to all of his children and grandchildren.

Henry loved caring for animals, raising cows, horses, cats, dogs, chickens, and even took in an injured crow. He bought horses for his grandchildren to ride and taught them how to shoot out in the field. He was truly a life-long learner and teacher at heart. Sharing his possessions and knowledge with friends and neighbors was something he enjoyed. He was always tinkering with something to make life easier or better. We videotaped his advice on several occasions because it was impossible to remember all of his knowledge!

More than anything, Henry enjoyed spending time with Louise at the cabin, the site of many wonderful memories with family and friends. He had that fire lit before most of us got out of bed no matter what the weather. His love of tinkering knew no bounds at the cabin and it has gone under many renovations and repairs to get to where it is today – running water and a fully functional bathroom, much to everyone’s delight!

We will try to make you proud, fair winds and following seas, we have the watch.