Alexander Carl Ekle
Alex Ekle, 90, went to be with the Lord on December 12, 2018 at his home in Mount Vernon, Washington. He was preceded in death by his wife Arlene in 2013. He will be greatly missed by his family and many friends.
Alex was born July 3, 1928 in Mount Vernon, Washington to parents Anna Marie Ekle (nee Sorensen) and Alexander Ekle Sr. He grew up in Utsalady on Camano Island, as his parents undertook the selling of waterfront lots which his grandfather had platted in 1891. He attended Twin City High School in Stanwood, where he lettered in baseball and football, graduating in 1947.
In 1951, he graduated from Pacific Lutheran College with a B.A. in Business Administration and was inducted into the army that same year. He trained at Fort Holabird in Baltimore, then assigned to the 441st Detachment of the Counter Intelligence Corps. He worked in the former Kempei Tai headquarters in Tokyo, Japan and returned home in 1953.
Alex married Janet Michael in 1956 and they divorced in 1969. He married Arlene Madsen in 1975; they lived in Tacoma until moving to Mount Vernon in 1995.
He worked for 8 years at the National Bank of Commerce in Mount Vernon and Burlington, then went to work for the state of Washington. He was an accountant for 8 years at Northern State Hospital in Sedro-Woolley; the next 8 years he was the chief accountant at the women's correction center in Purdy. He spent his last 10 years as chief accountant and business manager at the men's prison on McNeil Island, retiring in 1990.
He loved sports, was a charter subscriber to Sports Illustrated (1954), and had Seahawks season tickets for their first 20 seasons. He was an active member of First Lutheran Church in Mount Vernon. In addition, he loved to travel by car around the United States, making two trips to Alaska and going to Minnesota several times to visit relatives. He and Arlene also traveled to New York to see Niagara Falls and went several times to Branson, MO to see the entertainers including Andy Williams.
Alex is survived by his sons David (Tuyet) and Ken (Anita); stepdaughter Cathy (Matt) Kenison; grandchildren Taylor Ekle, Hayley Ekle, Spencer Ekle, Nathan (Stephanie) Kenison, Lauren (Don) Cox, Samantha Kenison; and great-grandchildren Jace Cox and Alex Kenison.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, December 29th at 1:00 pm at First Evangelical Lutheran Church, 2015 East Blackburn Road, Mount Vernon. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Lutheran.