Boyd “Fergy” Ferguson

Boyd McDougal “Fergy” Ferguson, of Bainbridge Island, died at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Aug. 26 after suffering cardiac arrest. He was 87.

He was born on July 8, 1922 in Lexington, Mo., the third son of Robert and Helen Ferguson.

He graduated from high school in Grand Island, Neb., in June 1942. He served in the military from 1943-1948 and was honorably discharged as a corporal in the U.S. Army Air Corp. He graduated from the University of Colorado on the GI Bill, with a degree in fine arts. He met his wife, La Verne I. “Bernie” Long, at a Halloween party; they married after her graduation in 1948.

Some of the best times for Bernie and Fergy were while working in Rangely, Colo., he as a roughneck on an oil rig, and she as a property manager. Their son, Larry, was born in Rangely. Daughter Dede came along seven years later while he worked his way up the corporate ladder as a personnel administrator for Dow Chemical and later as a personnel manager for Swinerton and Walberg Construction Company. The family enjoyed many years in a house that the couple designed in Boulder, Colo., where they participated in church, scouting and civic activities.

Retirement in Cathlamet, Wash., was secure and pleasant. He loved the river, which reminded him of his early days on the Missouri River, and enjoyed poetry, parades, Pall Malls and photography. He loved his country, his family and Glenn Miller music.

He was preceded in death by his brothers, Robert and Richard Ferguson. He is survived by his beloved wife, Bernie Ferguson of Bainbridge Island; his younger sister, Helen Harper, of Prairie Village, Kan.; children Dede Shorett and her husband Peter of Bainbridge Island; son Larry Ferguson of Sebastopol, Calif.; and grandchildren Jennifer Ferguson and Carl and Brooke Shorett.

In lieu of a funeral or memorial service, he asked that all who knew him extend a “remembrance blessing” in their own way. A private family gathering will be held later in Boulder, where his cremains will be interred. Arrangements are by Cook Family Funeral Home. An online guest book is at www.cookfamilyfuneralhome.com.