Harvey L. Yanko

Puyallup, WA. — On December 29th, 1940 Harvey L. Yanko was born in Lundale, WV to Virginia Yanko. Harvey passed away on June 6th 2017 after a complication from surgery. He was proceeded in death by his maternal grandmother and grandfather, Helen and Joseph Yanko, who raised him, and his mother. While Harv had no siblings, he had numerous cousins and aunts and uncles that enriched his childhood. Harv graduated from Logan High School in 1959 and eventually joined the US Army. He made a career in the US Army, traveling to South Korea, Grafenwohr, West Germany, Vietnam and numerous posts stateside. In 1978, Harv married his wife, Cheryl and four years later welcomed the arrival of their daughter, Kira. Finally, after nearly 25 years in the Army, Harv retired as a Sergeant Major and moved to Washington state where Cheryl’s family resided. Once settled in the Pacific Northwest, Harvey decided to further his education and received a Bachelor’s degree in Law and Justice from Central Washington University. Shortly after graduation, Harv began his second career by working for the Social Security Administration. After nearly 25 years with SSA, half of which was as a supervisor, and at the age of 73, Harvey finally retired for the last time. Whenever asked why he waited so long to retire, Harv would always say that it was the people he worked with that kept him there…he loved the people in his unit. Outside of Harv’s time in the military, he had two big passions…baseball and gardening. Even from a young age, listening to the Cincinnati Reds on the radio, Harv always found time to listen or watch his favorite game. After moving to Washington in 1984, he became an avid fan of the Mariners and developed a thirst for collecting memorabilia…specifically player cards and later, bobbleheads. When he wasn’t sorting through the thousands of cards he had, Harvey could be found working in the yard. Whether it was mowing the grass, weeding or simply planting the latest flower Cheryl brought home, Harvey always seem to find an endless number of projects needing his attention in the yard. Harvey and Cheryl bought a small house on Hood Canal several years prior to his retirement. Harv loved going there and found the sound of the waves relaxing and perfect for reading. He also found time to pull out a golf club and hit golf balls off their deck out into the water. Harv also loved walking the beach when the tide was out looking for that one perfect shell, rock or errant golf ball. Survivors include the love of his life for over 39 years, Cheryl, a daughter, Kira Yanko-Heilman, son-in-law, Ray Heilman, and granddaughter, Arden Heilman of Spooner, Wisconsin. He is also survived by two sons, Mark Yanko of Ohio and Curtis Yanko of West Virginia and numerous other grandchildren and one great-grandchild.