Ted Findlay VanderWeyst passed away on January 2, 2016, in Fairbanks, Alaska, with his loving wife Rita Allee at his side. His family, friends and colleagues will retell his stories, laugh with him every day (oftentimes at his expense), and continue to learn the lessons he taught us. We thank him for his love and care, and for service to the communities he built all over the Pacific Northwest and beyond. We will root for the Seattle Mariners baseball team and UAF Lady Nanooks basketball team, keeping your spirit and love of the sports alive. Born Sept 26, 1937, a month premature, in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, during the Great Depression, Ted charmed all those who knew his unique, no nonsense character. A tough man with a soft and generous center, Ted was widely known as an expert in his field of civil engineering for the young state; and a reliable provider for his unique and large family. Ted graduated from Ketchikan High School in 1955. He attended the University of Idaho on a football scholarship. Leaving college, he served in the U.S. Army as a Second Lieutenant in the Korean DMZ. After discharge because of extensive shrapnel wounds, he received his Degree in Civil Engineering from Portland State University. Ted's legacy lives on through his 9 children, 15 grandchildren, and his many dozens of colleagues throughout his 60-year career with the "old guardGÇ¥ construction industry in the farthest reaches of Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. As a teenager Ted was on the pioneer survey crew for the Denali Highway. As a young engineer, he assessed the roads of South Central Alaska for a priority of repair following the 1964 Alaska earthquake. He served as the youngest project engineer at that time for the construction of the road to Skagway. As a representative of the contractor, he supervised the fabrication and launch of the bridge over Hurricane Gulch, and, of course, worked on the construction of the Alaska Oil Pipeline. Ted worked on construction projects from the North Slope to the tip of the Aleutian Chain throughout the Interior, Southeast and the Kenai Peninsula. His involvement and love of construction work continued until shortly prior to his death. Ted was preceded in death by his father Theodore VanderWeyst, mother Bernice Findlay VanderWeyst, sister Barbara "JoyGÇ¥ Atkin, son Phillip VanderWeyst, and grandson Dylan VanderWeyst. Ted is survived by his sister Genevieve "PennyGÇ¥ Murphy (husband Bob), and his cousin James Nelson of Juneau, Alaska. Ted married Rita T. Allee on January 10, 1990, in Fairbanks, Alaska. In Alaska, Ted is survived by his devoted wife Rita T. Allee and their daughter Mercedes Theuer Birdsall (husband Chris). Ted married the former Josette Millard of Juneau, Alaska, in 1958. In Washington State, Ted is survived by his former wife Josette VanderWeyst and their children Patricia VanderWeyst Smith (husband Barry) and their sons Brendan (wife Brianna) and Joel (wife Aimee); son Peter VanderWeyst (wife Laurie) and his daughter Anna and son Connor; daughter Pamela VanderWeyst Haley (husband Jim) and their daughter Krystal Haley Neal (husband Erik); son Paul VanderWeyst; son Patrick VanderWeyst (wife Lisa) and their daughter Emma and son Ben; son Ted Preston VanderWeyst and (wife Stephanie) and their daughters Karlee, Valerie,Heidi and Miranda; and daughter Paige VanderWeyst Sprague (husband Travis) and their sons Jacob and Carter. A celebration of life will be planned in Fairbanks at a future date with a family memorial service in Lynnwood, Washington, in April, 2016. Condolences may be sent to the VanderWeyst family, in care of Pamela Haley, PO Box 825, Monroe, Washington 98272.
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