Oleph Fugate's Obituary
Oleph Junior Fugate, 76, of Centralia, went peacefully home to his Lord Tuesday, April 26th, 2011 after a brief battle with cancer. Ole, the youngest of seven, was born on October 10th, 1934 in Sublette, Mo. to Oleph and Esther Fugate. Hard times found the Fugate family moving to the wild west and settling in Colville, WA. Little Ole fell upon harder times as he was orphaned at an early age and was then raised by his grandparents Arthur and Sarah Fugate of Colville. During his youth, Ole spent his time riding his horse through the hills and working on cars with his brother Lee. At age 17 Ole joined the Navy and served 4 years as a Communications Specialist assigned to the Naval Intelligence department. Ole was awarded 2 purple hearts while serving in Korea and Japan. During this time Ole met the love of his life and the -Å"first girl sailor he had ever seen,- Ruth L. Wood. After a whirlwind courtship, Ole convinced Ruth to marry him and they were wed May 21st, 1954. Ole's buddies laughed and said it would not last a year. Ole had wished they could see that it indeed did and many more. After his time in the Navy, Ole and Ruth moved to the Seattle area. Ole attended
various trade schools while working for the Boeing Co. In 1961 Ole joined the Pipefitters Union where he became a steamfitter welder. Ole worked out of Local 82 in Tacoma and traveled the country enhancing his skills in his craft. Ole worked on many industrial projects including construction of the Centralia Steam Plant and oil field structures in Alaska. Ole was a Freemason and a 40 year member of Terrestrial Lodge #228. He was preceded in death by a son David Earl Fugate and by five brothers and sisters. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Ruth at the family home, brother Earl Fugate of Salem, children: Daniel (Tami) Fugate of Centralia, WA, Donna (Jack) Moss of Tumwater,WA, Donald Fugate of Ethel, WA, two grandsons, two step-grandchildren, and five step-great grandchildren. The family would like to thank Dr. Chris Yarter, Sharon Care Center, Leah's Adult Family Home, and Assured Home Health Hospice for their support and loving care. We would also like to thank Ole's -Å"adopted- sister Judy McCann and Judy's Country Kitchen for their loving friendship. Funeral arrangements were under the direction of Mountain View Cemetery in Tacoma, WA.
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