Roger Slater, 86, of Pullman, passed away peacefully after a brief illness at Sacred Heart Medical Center, in Spokane, Washington, on Friday, October 7, 2016.
Roger, the eldest of 8 children was born on July 28, 1930 to John and Dorothy Slater in Kenosha, Wisconsin. A serious, yet funny child, he grew up in Kenosha where he attended number of public and Catholic schools and graduated from German Lutheran High School.
Roger joined the US Navy in 1947, serving in both the Korean and Viet Nam Wars, retiring after 20 years of service of which he was most proud. The Navy became a second family to Roger, and, as a result, instilled in him a lifetime of love and loyalty for that organization. After leaving the Navy, Roger went to work for Hewlett-Packard in Palo Alto, California and worked for HP at various locations in California, the last of which was in Santa Rosa, where he retired as a Building Maintenance Supervisor in 1984.
After marrying the former Constance Travers Handley in September, 1983, the couple moved to Pullman, Washington in 1985 where he shared her love until she passed away in May, 2009. During his time in Pullman, Roger owned and operated a cleaning business, Roger's Cleaning Service, after selling the business, he went on to work for American Building Maintenance and later, retiring from Pullman Regional Hospital, where he also volunteered for many years at the Information Desk. Roger was known for his ready smile, always pleasant personality and for being a good neighbor and friend. Besides Connie and his grandchildren, Roger loved his dogs, namely Winston, Priscilla and Chloe, buying new cars, and owning every new electronic gadget that would come on the market.
He is survived by 2 children, Mary Ann Schnell (Mike) of Puyallup, Washington, and, George Slater (Debbie) of Canton, North Carolina; 2 stepchildren, Patricia Wright (Ray) of Pullman, Washington and Constance Dubendorf (Jim) of Citrus Heights, California; 8 grandchildren, Melonie Ditmore, of Tacoma, Washington, Samantha McKinley of Canton, North Carolina, Rochelle Pritchett of Hoquiam, Washington, Lisa Rowberry of Rancho Cordova, California, George Slater, Jr of Arizona, Brian Vickers of Montana, Caroline Wright of San Francisco, California, and, Joe Wright of Seattle, Washington; 9 great grandchildren; 2 sisters, Donna Czarnecki of Kenosha, Wisconsin and Audrey Kammer of Tomahawk, Wisconsin, and, one brother, John Slater, Jr of San Antonio, Texas; and, many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife, Connie, his parents, 3 brothers, one sister, a granddaughter, Jamie Vickers Driggers, and, a great granddaughter, Taylor Marie Ditmore.
Visitation will be Wednesday, October 19, from 6:00 to 7:30 PM, at Kimball Funeral Home, 905 S Grand, Pullman. Funeral Service will be Thursday, October 20 at 11:00 AM at Sacred Heart Church, 440 NE Ash, Pullman. Vault interment will follow at Pullman City Cemetery, Fairmount Road, Pullman. Friends are invited to join the family for a reception at Paradise Creek Brewery, 245 SE Paradise St, Pullman, immediately following interment. Online condolences may be sent to www.kimballfh.com
Memorial Gifts are suggested to the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation, 840 SE Bishop Boulevard, Suite 200, Pullman, Washington 99163. Kimball Funeral Home is caring for the family.