Stephen Gary Spak | Obituary

Stephen Gary Spak of Mercer Island, WA passed away peacefully on November 26, 2022. Gary was born in Seattle to Alice and Stephen Spak on May 4, 1938. He was raised in Issaquah and graduated from Issaquah High School in 1956. Gary attended Washington State University and was a member of the Phi Kappa Theta Fraternity. He graduated in 1962 with a B.A. in Business Administration.

Before graduating, he met the love of his life, Jeanette Lukasiewicz from Farwell, Nebraska. He then began two years of service with the U.S. Army and was assigned to the White House Communications Agency as an administrative and operations specialist supporting communications for President Kennedy and President Johnson while they traveled. Gary and “Jan” were married in 1964 and settled down on Mercer Island where they started raising a family and resided there for the remainder of their lives. Gary worked for the Boeing Company for five years supporting the Minuteman Missile program before being hired by the SAFECO Corporation in 1971 where he worked for 25 years in several managerial capacities related to the information technology field.

He loved nature and enjoyed taking his family on camping trips around the Pacific Northwest. Along with his wife, Gary thoroughly enjoyed watching his children play sports. He had several hobbies that included amateur radio operating, playing the accordion and jogging. He was a consummate “do-it-yourselfer” having built a garage, electronics, repaired cars, and countless home repairs. They were both avid sports fans and routinely enjoyed attending Seattle Seahawk and WSU football games. They also enjoyed taking trips with their travel trailer. Garywasprecededindeathbyhisbeloved wife of 49 years, Jan, in 2013 and his sister Colleen Spak in 2007.

Gary is survived by his four children: Pat Spak (Diana), Sherry Wahl (Wesley), David Spak (Kimberly), Greg Spak (Marysunshine) and his nine loving grandchildren, Patrick, Maria, Kevin, Jacqueline, Brady, Haley, Izaak, Maverik and Kaia.

Friends are invited to join the family on Thursday, December 8th for a viewing at 4:00 p.m. and vigil at 5:00 p.m. at Flintoft’s Funeral Home, 540 East Sunset Way, Issaquah, WA. The funeral mass is December 9th, 11:00 a.m. at St. Monica Catholic Church, 4301 88th Ave SE, Mercer Island, WA. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or a charity of your choice. Friends are invited to share memories, view photos, and sign the family’s online guestbook at www.flintoffs.com