Arthur Johannes Jacobsen
Arthur Johannes Jacobsen, 94, of Bothell, WA, passed away peacefully on October 28, 2008 after a courageous battle with lung cancer.
He was born on September 1, 1914 in East Chain, Minnesota, the third of four children, to Martin K. and Christine Jacobsen who were poor farmers and newly arrived from Denmark. In a unique twist of fate, he was born on the same day as his father and on the same day as his father’s father.
In the early 1920s, when he was about 7 years old, the family moved back to Denmark because Christine was homesick. Six years later, they returned to the U.S. and, after a banker absconded with their savings, they were forced to eke out a living on a farm. Art quit school to work. In 1933, after his favorite sister, Laura, died of TB, he followed his older brother, Chris, to Seattle where there was a promise of a good job. He was nineteen then. In Seattle he lived and worked on the dairy farm which belonged to Harold Virkelyst in what is now the Crown Hill area just south of Carkeek Park. He met and married Betty Jane Moore in Seattle on September 2, 1940. They had four children together:
Art was a very hard worker with an innate sense of business. He provided a good life for his family. The man with only an 8th grade education owned the largest milk delivery route in Seattle. When he began his business, he worked for 12 years without taking a single day off. He was a milk deliveryman for 40 years.
Arthur Johannes Jacobsen
Art was a good father to his children and a faithful and loving husband to Betty for more than 68 years. His devotion to Betty was legendary and their marriage an inspiration to all. The tragic loss of their first-born child, Sandy, early in their marriage, only served to strengthen their bond.
Art will be remembered most for his love of hunting, camping, and fishing which he passed on to his sons. He taught his sons conservation, respect for living things, and a love of the outdoors decades before the word “ecology” ever entered the American vocabulary.
Arthur is survived by his wife, Betty, his two sons, Gary (Diane) of Lake Havasu City AZ, and Chris (Heidi) of Seattle, and by his two grandchildren Michael Neal Jacobsen of Lacey and Corey Todd Jacobsen (Justine) of Cheyenne, WY, two great-grandsons, Deryk and Ryan Jacobsen, loving nieces, Marjolaine Schmitt of Sioux Falls SD, Judi Weiser of Seattle, Lollie Jacobsen of Mendocino CA., nephew Don Jacobsen of Seattle, and many grand nieces and grand nephews.
Art was preceded in death by his mother and father, his brother Chris, his sisters Laura and Catherine, his daughter Sandy, and his son Michael.
A celebration of his life will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, November 15 in the upstairs Ballroom of the South County Senior Center, 220 Railroad Avenue, Edmonds, Washington. Everyone who knew him and loved him is invited. Please come and bring your favorite story for this celebration of Art’s life. In lieu of flowers, please contribute to the charity of your choice.
