Arthur Harold Valentine

Harold Valentine was born 89 years ago on September 23rd, 1933 to father Art Valentine and mother Bonnie Valentine. He grew up in a large family with two sisters, Carol and Patsy, and two brothers, Gerald and Sherrill. At an early age, the family moved to Tennessee, and it was there that he spent his formative years. He had a strong work ethic that began by working at a young age. Amongst other hardscrabble work to make ends meet during these hard years of the Great Depression, he traded moonshine on foot and by horseback in the Smokey Mountains. Harold enlisted in the army in 1951 and served two years abroad in Germany. In 1953 he moved to Peshastin, WA to take advantage of opportunities in the booming logging industry. He spent his entire adult life working as a laborer in orchards and as a logger. As a logger he was injured seriously several times. But he always returned to work and persevered, serving as a provider for his family. In 1955 he married Mary Lou Cowan and the couple had one daughter, Janeen Delzer. He was a dedicated father to Janeen, and never missed any high-school sporting events while she was in school. Over the years, his family grew, including two grandchildren, Sesalie and Maverick Delzer, and then two great-grandchildren, Keenan Delzer and Axl Campbell. He was particularly close with his two grandchildren and his first great-grandson and played a significant role in helping to raise them. Harold also lived a life of service, spending more than 25 years collecting fresh fruit and vegetables from a local farmer for donation to the Leavenworth Community Cupboard to help those in need. He was an avid outdoorsman. His entire life he found peace hunting, fishing, and hiking in the mountains. He loved winter salmon fishing on the Tumwater Canyon. The simple adventures of trips in his truck, far and near, were a pleasure for him. He was well known for his daily trek to the local Shell station in Dryden for coffee and conversation and also loved visiting with neighbors in the Peshastin area daily. His mischievous and brutally honest commentary were familiar to all who knew him. To the family he was also famous for his constant predilections for See's candies, Ritz crackers topped with Peanut butter, country music, and many sports, chief among them professional wrestling (which he would often watch with his great-grandson, Keenan). But above all, Harold was at his core a family man. He lived the last 21 years of his life with his daughter, grandson, and great-grandson. He cherished living in the same home with them and attributed his long life and the great quality of his latter years to being surrounded by them. This familial love and inspiration continued into the last year of his life when in early 2022 Harold learned he would become a great-grandfather for a second time. When his health began to decline in June of this same year, he was determined to live long enough to know his second great-grandchild. On September 9th this desire became reality, and he met his second great-grandson. He considered it a blessing to be able to spend so many hours visiting the new baby over the final months of his life. His death strikes his family with extreme grief and sadness. But they recognize and are grateful for the very long and fruitful life he lived, as well as the profound impact, influence, and inspiration he had on every one of them. He will be forever missed but always greatly loved by all of them. In place of a service, please consider a donation the Local Community Cupboard (MEND) in Leavenworth in his name.

Arthur Harold Valentine

September 22, 1933 - December 8, 2022