Marvin Henry Grant Jr.3 Sept. 1929 — 9 Aug. 2025

Marvin Henry “Hank” Grant Jr. was born 3 Sep. 1929 in Springfield, Missouri. It was the dawn of the Depression and so he learned early to enjoy life with little. “All I needed was a stick and some dirt,” he’d say with a grin. After seven years of moving from job to job and house to house, his parents — Marvin and “Gigi” — decided to move west, finally ending up at the mouth of Washington’s Hoquiam River where there were better prospects in 1937. Five years later they were settled securely in the nearby company town of Aloha, whose shingle and sawmills would open the door to Hank’s life-long employment in the lumber industry.

By the time he entered Moclips-Aloha High School he had already developed an indifferent attitude toward education (too much of a dreamer, he said). Then one day in Study Hall, while staring out the window at the ocean, an inspired teacher suggested he read a book. It was Joshua Slocum’s “Sailing Alone Around the World” and it immediately instilled a life-long passion that brought him joy and satisfaction his entire life. To this day his children’s hearts are warmed by books, boats, and nautical charts.

Alas, after joining the Naval Reserve as a teenager and after a day of charter fishing off Westport, he realized his stomach was not meant for open seas. Steering a new course, he enlisted in the USAF where he was assigned to 10th Air Rescue out of Elmendorf AFB. The Air Force was a natural choice for a young man who, as a teenager during WWII, enjoyed following the tracers that Pacific Beach’s navy base fired at target tugs flying off the coast. He had also spent many after-school hours in the Observation Tower above Aloha’s company store, scouting for enemy planes over the Pacific.

He returned to “the beach” after his military service, and it was in a little restaurant at Pacific Beach that the most important milestone of his life occurred, when he met a pretty girl named Barbara Foster and quickly realized that a life without her would be no life at all. They married in 1954 and eventually settled at Copalis Crossing with their three children. It was at the Crossing that he wholeheartedly pursued an interest in photography. In his darkroom his children watched in solemn and reverential awe as he developed and enlarged his own photos. On the burl coffee table he made, there was always a book of marine exploration — from Ann Davison and Jack London to Thor Heyerdahl and Ernest Shackelton. While he was busy building and repairing things he would supply his young kids with their own building materials and give them free rein. What did they build? Skiffs!

As the Aloha mill began to shut down in 1964, Barbara’s brother-in-law Jerry Reynvaan suggested they join his family in Sitka, Alaska where there were jobs at Alaska Lumber and Pulp Company. Thus began over 37 years in southeast Alaska. Sitka turned out to be a mecca for a boater not meant for open waters. Still, he always prioritized his family in every way. Hank quickly developed a reputation at work as a man of strong principles: honest and industrious. He was known by friends for his kindness and abundant generosity. Detesting anyone who played upon his sympathy, he could recognize someone truly in need. It was no surprise to be approached on the street and told “Your dad is a beautiful man! Do you know what he did for me?!” At the Nazarene Church he was known as a gentle soul who loved to tease — always with that twinkle in his eye!

After retirement he worked part-time as janitor for Mt. Edgecombe Preschool where his wife was employed until finally, in 2001, they relocated to Sequim, WA. There he enthusiastically took up vegetable gardening, and he and Barbara enjoyed many excursions with his in-laws Jerry and Carol Reynvaan of Montesano, as well as trips throughout the Western states visiting more family and friends. But then Barbara died unexpectedly in 2012, leaving him reeling. He slowly rebuilt his life with the help of his granddaughter Julie Fischer who came to live with him. Soon he was again photographing and critiquing boats at the local marina and tinkering on little projects. He still did not believe in downtime. Recently his son Mark and wife Terri moved in to care for him.

Five days before his passing he was asked his fondest memory. “Exploring with Mom,” he immediately replied with love in his eyes. They would hop in the car, he explained, and drive without destination through little towns, finally circling back home. Surely, they are exploring eternity together right now.

Hank was preceded in death by his sister Ferne LeaVelle and three adored grandchildren: Kevin Grant, Jill Hirai, and Julie Fischer. He is survived by his brother Jim Grant of Tempe, Arizona; children Rhonda Dapcevich and Mark Grant of Sequim, Washington and Shari Wyman of Port Townsend, Washington; grandchildren Jeremy Phillips, Jolene Helem, Jennie Kobus, Justin Grant, Doug Grant, Diana Dapcevich, and Joe Dapcevich as well as 16 great-grandchildren. He was a wonderfully good and sweet man to have had as a grandpa.