John Arthur Steed, Sr.

Born in his parents home on Vashon Island, Washington, on December 6, 1924, John was the youngest of three sons born to Harriette Emeline (Dickson) and George William Steed. This is where he spent his youth. It was a time of hardship, sorrow, development and youthful shenanigans. At three years of age, John and his brothers, George and Willy, lost their beloved mother. It was especially sad, because Johns mother was a tremendous asset to the family. She graduated from Grove City College in 1907; had many years of experience as a teacher; ran for and won a public office in the Dakotas. Even though he was so young when his mother passed away, he remembered the neighborhood ladies coming by shortly after his mothers passing. They came to help straighten up their home and make it a bit cheerier. The ladies took down the curtains, which his mother had made, and replaced them with fresh, new curtains. When the ladies finished, Johns father thanked them for all their good work. When they left, however, Johns father took down the new curtains, and returned his mothers curtains back to where they previously hung. The love and respect his father held for their mother continued on throughout their lives. When his father cut logs for a living, he would take young John with him in order to keep an eye on him. The first thing his father would do was to build a fire to help keep him warm as he sat outside in the elements, while his father cut down trees. Years later, his father worked on the Virginia V for Captain Nels Christensen. Life was never easy. One pair of shoes a year for each boy was as much as they could manage. Their property on Vashon was on pleasant acreage. Yet their home lacked electricity and running water. It was not until John was in high school that on his own initiative, he decided to do something about it. He saw other homes had wires that brought electricity to provide light even during the darkest night. So he purchased some wire, installed it, and called the power company to connect it. When the electrician came, he told John that the wires he purchased would not do. The electrician must have been a very kind man, because he wrote out a list of electrical supplies for John. John quickly made a trip to the local store and returned with the items. With the electricians help, they wired the house. That night, however, John could not understand why the light in his house was not as bright as the light in all the other houses. He did not realize the light bulbs he purchased were all low wattage bulbs. On their property was a canyon. It was their main water source. John constructed a pumping system from the canyon to the house, which he maintained nearly his whole life. He told stories of his walking down the canyon to the beach community of Lisabeula. Once when he was walking in the canyon, he saw some mushrooms growing. He picked a few and ate them. He began noticing snakes appearing everywhere. It was a scary experience, which he never wanted to repeat. Living in a farming community, John was very familiar with cows and chickens. One day, he climbed high into a tree located in the bulls pasture. With him he brought a cow bell. He leaned way over to one side of the tree and shook the bell. The bull came running. Then he leaned way over to the other side of the tree and rang the bell. The bull kept running from one side of the tree the other as John kept moving back and forth, ringing the bell. Eventually, the bull became so crazed, that he went running, jumped over the fence out of the pasture, ran down the road and jumped the fence into the neighbors pasture with all their cows. His father never knew what had gotten into the bull. He just figured the bull had gone berserk on his own. Crazy bull! John attended the local one-room school house with an outhouse in the back. The teachers were kind and understanding. A wood stove kept them warm in the winter. John graduated from Vashon High School in 1943. He enjoyed friendships and was very involved in sports, especially baseball and tennis. He earned extra money working in the berry fields and sold ferns to florist shops. In December of his senior year, he received his draft notice. The United States was heavily involved in World War II. His eighteenth birthday signaled his eligibility to be drafted. His principal spoke to the draft board and asked if they could wait until he graduated. They agreed. After graduation, he was drafted into the army in July of 1943 and reported to Fort Lewis, WA. He moved on to Bend, OR for 3 months of Basic Training at Camp Abbott, which is now Sun River Lodge. He moved on to Camp Myles Standish, which was a U.S. Army camp located in Taunton, Massachusetts, just 35 miles south of Boston. He got pneumonia, went to the hospital, and as a result missed being shipped out with his original group. He eventually left on an American Troop Ship in March of 1944. In April of 1944 he was in Swindon, England. He was a T/5 (Similar to an Army Corporal) Technician Fifth Grade with the 1301 Combat Engineers under General George S. Pattons 3rd Army. He worked with Headquarters Service in the motor pool as a truck dispatcher in England. He was the personal jeep driver for 1st Lieutenant Kenny Miller, often driving at night in complete darkness. This caused the whites of his eyes to turn blood red. In May of 1944, he was in Liverpool, England. In June of 1944 (D-day +10), he was on Omaha Beach, France. In August of 1944, he was in Chartres, France and then moved on to Fontainebleau, France. In September of 1944 he reached Verdun, France and then moved on to Metz, France. In December of 1944 they were forced to return to Metz, France during the Battle of the Bulge. In January of 1945, he entered Trier, Germany. In February of 1945, he arrived in Frankfurt, Germany. His company built a steel bridge with the French across the Rhine River near here. In April of 1945, he was in Nuremburg, Germany. Germany surrendered on May 7th, and 8th, 1945, about a week after Adolf Hitler committed suicide. In May of 1945, he departed Marseille, France on an American Troop Ship headed to Asia in the war against Japan. In June of 1945, he passed Gibraltar. In July of 1945, he passed through the Panama Canal. In August of 1945, his ship was anchored on the north side of New Guinea by Hollandia, New Guinea (now called Jayapura, New Guinea). No one was allowed to get off the ship. Atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August. The surrender was signed on September 2nd, 1945 aboard the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. In November and part of December of 1945, John was in Manila, Philippines. In December of 1945, he was in San Diego, CA. In January of 1946, he was discharged at Fort Lewis, WA. He was a long standing member of VFW Post 8870 Edmonds, WA. The war had been difficult on John. Returning to a more normal life without guns or fear of being ambushed or strafed was a relief. He attended refrigeration schooling at a trade school in Yakima. He returned back to the Seattle area and became a refrigeration repairman on the railroad. One night he attended a public dance on Capitol Hill. At the beginning of each evening, they would give free dance lessons. This is where he met the love of his life, Roberta Louise Rapp. While courting, they realized they had met years earlier during their youth. They rode on the Vashon ferry together. They remembered speaking to each other. He even remembered what she wore. He also remembered that her father gave him a very stern look. This was the moment he decided he was never going to marry any girl from Vashon Island. He was going to marry someone like this girl. He knew he could count on her. If she said she would be somewhere at a certain time, she would be there. Within a year, they were married. They first lived in Lake City. Here they welcomed two sons, John and Bob, and then two daughters, Leanne and Leslie. They managed living in their two bedroom home by giving the boys one bedroom, the girls the other bedroom, and slept on the living room hide-a-bed. Eventually, they built a much larger home in Richmond Beach, just up the road from Robertas parents. This allowed the grandparents and grandchildren to develop wonderful relationships, which are often hard to come by today. In Richmond Beach, the tie was broken when a third daughter, Kathleen, was born. John Roberta celebrated 60 years together. John joined United Association Local 32 - Plumbers Pipefitters of Seattle, which allowed him to work for refrigeration repair companies. He worked for many decades at Wilderman Refrigeration. He repaired commercial refrigerators for large grocery stores and public schools all over the Puget Sound. He worked early in the morning until late at night. Often he was called out for night calls. He had every third weekend off. Even so, he was active in Boy Scouts and attended many camp outs. He joined the family on vacations to Camano Island and Birch Bay. He coached his kids tennis. He was a member of First Lutheran Church of Richmond Beach. His family never doubted the love he had for them or the love they had for him. text-indent: 0.5in; The five children graduated from universities with multiple and advanced degrees, including two M.B.A.s, one J.D. and one M.D. John and Roberta now have eight grandchildren ranging in age from 11 to 33; four have received college degrees, and one is an Eagle Scout. They have two young great-grandchildren.