John Eric Poling

John Poling died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family, on May 8, 2012.  

He was born in Middletown, Ohio, on October 25, 1948, and spent his childhood living in French Lick, Indiana, near the family homestead.  His family, including his older sister, Carolyn, moved to Reno, Nevada, when John was a teenager, where he graduated from high school and attended The University of Nevada before transferring to the University of California, Berkeley.  He lived in Mexico, New Mexico and then Indiana, where he met and married Sara Ames, having daughter Jessamyn in 1974.  After John and Sara divorced, John moved to Ellensburg to be near Jessamyn, eventually going to work for Kittitas County Community Action Council.  He met Jeanne-Marie, his wife of 33 years, while they were both working for social service programs, and they married in 1979 at the Wanapum Village near Mattawa in a Native American ceremony conducted by the Buck Family.  John was especially grateful to his in-laws, Larry and Lorrayne Peterson for their love and how they accepted him as a son.  

John embraced his life in Grant County, working for Grant County Community Action Council as Deputy Director until 1995, when he went to work for the Housing Authority of Grant County.  He was dedicated to providing housing for those in need, and was particularly proud of providing quality housing in Mattawa for migrant orchard workers, the renovation of the Bell Hotel in Ephrata, his work with state and federal legislation issues and with many non-profit agencies in providing safe and affordable housing for those in need.  He was a charter founder of the once Great Canoe Race in Soap Lake and helped develop the original Growth Management Plan for the City of Soap Lake.  He was a proud supporter of Wags'n'Whiskers Spay/Neuter Program and assisted in providing safe and affordable housing to orphan kitties at home, even helping with the bottle-feeding when necessary.  

He loved to work with wood and metal and created bags and moccasins out of leather; he enjoyed working in the yard and used his many talents to improve his home.  He was an unabashed political liberal and had hoped to create a blog about his political observations when he retired.  

He is survived by his wife, Jeanne-Marie Peterson of Soap Lake, his daughter, Jessamyn, her husband, David  Clark and granddaughter Kinley of Woodinville, his cats, the  Very Special Beedle, Toi, Kaera, Mabellouise, Starz and Doobie, Earl, Canasta and Bootsie.

A casual memorial service will be held at the old Post Office in Soap Lake on Saturday, June 9, at 3 pm.  In lieu of flowers, a donation to Wags'n'Whiskers Spay/Neuter Program or the re-election of Maria Cantwell is requested.