Gary Lanksbury died on April 18th from complications caused by the disease, Amyloidosis. He was born in Seattle in 1932, raised in Kirkland and graduated from Lake Washington High School in 1950. He lived most of his life in the Greater Seattle area. In the 50s he served four years in the US Navy and achieved the rank of Yeoman 1st class. During most of that tour of service he was stationed in the Mediterranean. He spent most of his career as a computer programmer, working for a time for Standard Oil in SanFrancisco and then Bekins Moving and Storage in Seattle. Gary had many hobbies and many friends. One achievement he was proud of was finishing quilts for The Ronald McDonald House. His hobbies included traveling, quilting, gardening, making teddy bears, collecting Heisey crystal, sewing and needlepoint, photography, cooking, pottery, art and antique collecting, being part of the Kirkland Heritage Society and many more. In 1992, Gary met Wayne and they built a home together in Bellevue. He is survived by his domestic partner, Wayne Bitterman and their cat, Tessie. Remembrances can be given to the Bailey-Boushay House, The Pride Foundation, or Lifelong AIDS Alliance and specify The Chicken Soup Brigade. Gary also loved tea and instead of a memorial service, people are asked to hold a tea party in his honor. Groups like his quilting, needlepoint and Heisey groups could get together. Even a single person could toast Gary with a cup of tea. Then send short notes of remembrance and photos to Wayne Bitterman at . I’ll then create a memorial web site that will be a tribute to our wonderful friend. The site URL will be–
http://home.comcast.net/~lanksbury/
