Obituary of Frederick M. Peck

Frederick M. Peck was born September 9, 1925, in Snohomish, Washington and lived his 88 years as a boisterous and confident man, He passed on February 22, 2014 and is survived by his sisters, Esther Rasmussen and Ruth Darling; his nieces, Shirley, Gail & Carol; his son, Michael Peck and his three grandchildren, Morgan, Chauney and Ragan, all who will miss him dearly. Special thoughts go out to his dear Friend Mitzi Simons who's generosity in time and spirit cannot be measured and Columbia Lutheran Home on Phinney Ave. N. where he spent his last 2 years, his buddy Dwight there as well as the kind and caring staff who had the pleasure of his hijinks. Fred was an extrovert who had friends everywhere, from the corner store to the cafe. He was a jokester who enjoyed working hard angles on all he came into contact with. His humor was as strong and devout as his love for ice cream. His wit was as sharp as his heart was tender. We only knew some of his wild and crazy tales, some of you out there may know more than we've thought possible. He adored and cherished his grandchildren and his generosity with them was renowned. The ideas and the gestures sometimes worked better than the objects. His heart underneath the gruff exterior was magnanimous and his mind proffered monumental ideas. His actions were the dreams of a grandiose man who harbored a thirteen bay garage in the backyard of a modest Tacoma home. Fred served his country in WWII and married immediately after the war at the age of 21 to Lorraine Peck and they had two children, Scott and Michael. He was a butcher. He was a truck driver. He served the Coroner's office of Pierce county. He became a business agent for the Teamsters Union and Labor Union. Along with his brothers, Paul and Eugene, they ran a cottage industry of restoring the great American Classic Cars. Who knows how many cars passed across his artisanship. His favorite of all time was a 1931 Nash Sedan, replete with three tone paint, crisp chrome, billowing interiors. He and his brothers (eventually) restored that '31 Nash to "pert'n'near" perfect condition. While Fred never feared getting his hands dirty, regardless of profession he was always smartly dressed. From his elaborate shaving rituals to the fedora he was rocking at the age of 88, he was very specific and exacting in his appearance. Even in his war time photos he made that uniform shine as the most shipshape and dashing of the bunch brandishing that devil may care half smile. With Fred now at rest, he joins his son, Scott, his wife, Lorraine, his brothers: Leslie, Raymond, Paul, Eugene; his sister, Verna, and his mother, Lena Peck, mother of eight children whom he always spoke highly of. Such a fiercely independent human is hard to pin down and even harder to pigeonhole his story and spirit into these short paragraphs. Please send us any tales or stories you might want to share in his memory: peckcars@gmail.com we will post them on a website for all to share: http://fredpeck.weebly.com A small memorial will be held in late March, please email for more details and location: peckcars@gmail.com. Maybe we can all have some good old-fashioned waffles with strawberries and extra whipped cream in his memory. "That'd be Good enough."