Roland Armstrong

Roland Ray "Rolly" Armstrong, 74, passed away on November 29, 2014 at SW Medical Center in Vancouver, WA. He was preceded in death on August 8, 2013 by Ginny, his beloved wife of 48 years. Also preceding him were his parents, James and Ruth Armstrong and brothers, Fred and Jim. He is survived by sons Steven Armstrong and Mark (Amy) Armstrong, daughters Beth Corcoran and Kirsten (Marty Dick) Gunderson, grandchildren Kaitlin (Elias) Scarborough, Michael (Rachel) Corcoran, Dean Corcoran, Kenzie Dick, Rylie Dick, Lexie Dick and Ben Armstrong, and brother Jerry (Mary) Armstrong.

Rolly was born on October 6, 1940. He attended school in Medford, OR where he was a member of the Crater High School Class of '58, known to his classmates as Sam. After marrying Ginny on November 26, 1964, they resided in the Washington communities of Sedro-Woolley, South Bend and Longview, and St. Helens, OR before making their home in Cathlamet. Rol worked at Pacific Wholesale in Raymond before opening his own business, Rol's Auto Parts in '85. In his early 50s, he went back to school, earning a degree in Behavioral Health & Science from Linfield College. He worked or volunteered for countless local organizations, all of which helped people in every way from mental health to finding jobs to putting food on the table through the local food bank. He was on the board for the Clean Air Agency, and manager at Quality Review Team.

A friend to everyone he met, Rolly always had a handshake, hug, smile and kind word. You could count on him to support any idea or endeavor. He could not say no if asked to help. It gave him great pride to serve as the Grand Marshal in the Bald Eagle Day parade last July. Rolly loved Ginny with all his heart, and lovingly cared for her for a decade prior to her death. His family and friends, as well as gardening, live music and his cat, Hey, were sources of joy for Rol. He loved his monthly book club with friends from Pacific County, as well as his weekly "stuff" email to friends and family. Rolly published a book, Musings from the Crater H.S. Class of 1958, compiled of six years of his monthly email updates about the classmates, starting after their 50th reunion.

A memorial service in his honor will be held at Wahkiakum High School in Cathlamet, WA on Saturday, January 17th at 1:00 p.m. Donations may be made to American Heart Association, Humane Society or Wahkiakum Helping Hand Food Pantry, PO Box 12, Cathlamet, WA 98612.