Kenneth Robert Schuricht
September 5, 1945 – March 23, 2013
Kenneth Robert Schuricht was born on September 5, 1945 in Los Angeles to Walter and Alma Schuricht. He graduated from East Bakersfield High School in 1963. In 1970 he graduated from Cal Poly at San Luis Obispo. Ken’s degree in Print Management brought him to the Pacific Northwest where he worked for many years with United Graphics Inc. In time Ken was transferred to another division, Bank Check Supply. He was ultimately promoted to plant manager and then to the position of General Manager of the Central Division. His work took him to new places over a period of many years, including Centralia, Walnut Creek and Memphis. Ken finally made his way back to Seattle where his last printing job was with Heath Printers.
In May 1989 Ken met his future wife, Mary Hall, on a blind date which had been arranged by mutual friends. They were forever after together and were married in June, 1991. Early on in their courtship Ken talked about his dream of having a hardware store in the country. They never let that vision leave them and they purchased Winslow Hardware in October 1994.
Ken and Mary loved fixing up the old store and renamed it Winslow Hardware and Mercantile. Ken loved helping people with their projects, always taking time to make sure that they got the right answer. If he wasn’t sure, his quick and fine intelligence helped him to create a solution. During the hardware store years, Ken and Mary travelled to many hardware shows throughout the United States and never tired of meeting new people and learning new things.
In 2005 Ken closed the hardware store and went to work with Mary at Winslow Paint Company which they had opened in December 2001. Again they put their passion into helping people and in living their lives together.
Ken loved to travel. In his last days on this earth he told Mary that he had wished that they could have done more. He was fortunate to make several trips to Japan and New Zealand. They also had special memories from time spent in Greece, Spain, France, Australia and Fiji. Ken was a passionate cyclist, riding the hills of Bainbridge Island with his dear biking buddies. He rode the Seattle to Portland bike ride (STP) several times, often completing the ride in one day. He rode Ride the Hurricane, the bike ride to the top of Hurricane Ridge in 2011, and in the spring of 2012 he and his biking friends drove to California and followed the Tour of California, riding many of the stages ahead of the professional cyclists.
Ken and Mary lived a quiet personal life with one another and with their close circle of friends. He spent many hours walking the beach at Hawley Cove, finding treasures and throwing the ball or the frisbee for one of their golden retrievers. Ken and Mary moved into their dream home in November 2003 and shared that beautiful space until they retired from the paint store in June 2012. In those years he was happiest when he was working on a home project, his table saw out and his radio tuned to the Seattle Mariners. He also took up cooking and perfected not only his lasagna recipe but was able to fulfill the dream of having a “deep pit” barbecue that he built to cook his birthday dinner roast. Ken loved spending time with his four grandchildren who would call out to him in a melody of young voices, “Poppy” or “Poppa.”
In August 2012, two months into retirement, Ken was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of multiple myeloma, a bone cancer. He was always upbeat and optimistic until his final days, continuing to provide comfort to those who were trying to comfort him. He was surrounded with family and friends in his final days and we continued to love him until the very end.
Survivors include wife Mary Hall, Bainbridge Island. Daughter Carly Cloer (Terry) of Spokane and their sons Grant and Alex; daughter Lisa Hamilton (Joel) of Edmonds and their two daughters Ana and Kailey. Brother Jim Schuricht (Kathy) of Incline Village, Nevada and Sausalito, California. Brothers in law Phil Hall (Theresa) and Kelly Hall of Bainbridge Island, John Hall (Barbara) of Monarch Beach, California and Sister in law, Claire Shaw, of Westlake Village, California. Also nieces and nephews, Michael, Jillian, CJ and Laura.
It was Ken’s wish to have a Celebration of Life and his desire will be fulfilled on Saturday, May 4th, at the Manor House at Lynwood Center, Bainbridge Island, from 1 pm to 3 pm. Everyone is invited to celebrate the life of this beautiful man.
The family asks that donations in Ken’s memory be made to the Bainbridge Public Library, a wonderful source that Ken discovered in the past several years.
Please sign the online Guest Book for the family at: www.cookfamilyfuneralhome.com.
TRIBUTE Paid Notice
