Edward William Hawk

Edward William Hawk, known as Bill, Dad, Senior, and Grandpa to those close to him, passed away at the age of 72 at his home in Bellingham, WA on May 2, 2012. He died peacefully in his sleep of a heart arrhythmia. He was born on January 11, 1940 in Harrisburg, PA, and spent his early years as a military child, traveling the US and Germany with his parents Paul and Helen Hawk. He was an only child but he had numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends in the area. He was twice married and twice divorced, first to Marilyn with whom he had two children, Shannon and Bill, and later to Anne. He received a Bachelor'?s degree from Western Washington University and later a Master'?s degree from Seattle Pacific University. He taught high school students the fundamentals of English, communication, and the finer points of Shakespeare. He was also an active member of the teacher'?s union and he would wear a pin that said, '''It sounds like Bullshit to me''? to negotiation sessions. He built his first family home in Puyallup, doing much of the work himself. He was a great dad who took his children camping, picking strawberries, to Shakespeare plays, rock concerts, and on vacations to Hawaii.He lived in Bellingham for the past 5 years after moving from south Tacoma to be closer to his family. Both his children are raising families in the Bellingham area and it was his top priority to be an actively involved grandpa. He loved his grandkids and spent quality time with them. He loved taking them on adventures for his own enjoyment, but he also knew it was good for the kids to get out and experience new things, plus it helped out Shannon & Tom and Bill & Carol, it was really a win-win-win for all. Some of the things he would do with the kids would be to take them to watch diggers, dump trucks, garbage trucks, and the claw grabber at the recycling yard. Or he'?d take them to lunch at Boomers, Bobs Burgers, Port of Subs, Burger Me, 7-11, Tinos, or to breakfast at Lil Cheerful. We went many places as a family and Grandpa always came along. Places like Boulevard Park, the Deming Log Show, Xmas tree cutting, and the Pumpkin Farm. He often joined us for meals at our houses, or at restaurants like Prospect St. Caf?, and the Kyoto Steak House for many celebrations. He was really looking forward to the family Hawaii vacation in December. He was always present and involved at every birthday party. Always called first thing in the morning and showed up with a nice card and meaningful gift. He was loving, supportive, helpful, dedicated, devoted, active and engaged. Always ending his visit with a hug and a '''love you''?.The same was true of the family dogs too. While he didn'?t want the responsibility of taking care of his own dog, he loved helping out with Paige, Logan, Blade, and Boomer. He would always take them down to the lake to throw the stick or ball. Grandpa had a very dry and sarcastic sense of humor. He loved irony and had a good nose for BS. That'?s probably why some of his favorite shows included the Jon Stewart Daily Show, Colbert Report, Bill Maher, and the comedy of George Carlin. He loved going to Seahawks games. He'?d been a season-ticket holder for over 10 years and valued the time he got to spend with his kids doing something they all enjoyed. He also like to camp during the summers and to gather firewood, which by gathering firewood meant driving his van out into the cascade foothills, finding an un-gated forest service road, driving around looking for slash piles, firing up the chainsaw in nothing but shoes and shorts, bucking up rounds, loading them into the van and driving them home to be unloaded, split, and stacked all by himself, before cell phones and wearing safety gear were popular. He is survived by his daughter Shannon, son-in-law Tom, and their two children Tommy ''' 3, and Maegan ''' 7 months. He is also survived by his son Billy, his daughter-in-law Carol, their nephew Shawn - 17, and their son Slater ''' 6. He also leaves behind many family and friends from Bellingham, Tacoma, Puyallup, and Pennsylvania. A sentimental service celebrating the life of E. William Hawk (Bill, Senior and Grandpa) will be held on Saturday May 19th, 2012 from 3 ''' 6 pm at the Sudden Valley Adult Center located at 10 Barn View Ct in Bellingham WA. Education Memorial Fund donations to his grandchildren'?s college funds can be made payable to GET (Guaranteed Education Tuition) and be mailed to 188 Polo Park Dr, Bellingham WA 98299.'''Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.''? ''' William Shakespeare.