Melvin Norris Neighbors

Melvin Norris Neighbors (Skip) was born November 19, 1940 in Monette, Arkansas. His early years were spent in Monette with his parents Norris Lorel and Melvin Henry Neighbors as well as his grandparents and other family members. When his dad was deployed in the military, the young family often returned to Arkansas until Mel’s dad was home again. Mel’s grandfather, an Arkansas judge, played a huge role in young Mel’s life. Mel in turn was a very involved, loving father to his children and loving grandfather to his grandchildren. Following World War II, the family was stationed stateside until the whole family moved to occupied Japan. When the Korean War broke out the family was evacuated as Mel’s dad joined General MacArthur. Stateside assignments followed the Korean Conflict with the family eventually arriving at Ft. Lewis in Washington. Mel finished his high school diploma at Clover Park High School in 1959. He later received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Puget Sound. Wherever he was, hunting, fishing and playing sports played an important part in Mel’s life. This did not stop in adulthood, although at some point the of playing sports was replaced by watching sports, especially played by his children and grandchildren. For a short time in his 20’s, Mel was a Pierce County Deputy. Upon graduation from UPS, he was hired by the Clover Park School District and became a 6th grade teacher. He taught 6th grade for three years and then went on to become an elementary school principal, Assistant Superintendent for Personnel and Labor Relations and finally Assistant Superintendent for Business. He spent 34 years in the district. His exemplary career was important, but even more important was his family, friends and community service activities. He was involved with the Boy Scouts of America for 53 years. He was a member of Lakewood Rotary for decades and served as its president 1977-78. He was a founder of the Boys and Girls Club in Lakewood. Mel was recognized through many awards for his leadership and dedication. In retirement years, he spent more time serving his church. He served as president of the congregation at his former church, Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Tacoma. He went to China with the church four times, once with ELCA Global Missions and three times with China Service Ventures. Again, he helped establish programs and modeled his faith in the very poor regions of China. Mel passed away on February 23, 2020. He is survived by a family who dearly love him, his wife, Patty, children Scott (Tammie), Stacy (Randy Cole), Brock (Christina) and Bryn, grandchildren Cutter,Tia, Kyleigh, Kaden, Aspen, Collin, Dane, Ryley, Cheyenne, Hailey, Cody and Marissa. Five great-grandchildren also survive him. In lieu of flowers, if you wish to make a donation, the family has selected two charities that reflect Mel’s passions: (1) The Pacific Pediatric Neuro-oncology Consortium; address: PNOC Foundation 1005 Northgate Drive #224 San Rafael CA 94903 (check) or their website www.pnocfoundation.org or (2) St. Mark’s Lutheran Church by the Narrows, 6730 N 17th St, Tacoma, WA 98406. The memorial service scheduled for Saturday, March 21 has been POSTPONED!