Edgar William McKay
May 5, 1925 – July 8, 2018
Edgar William McKay, longtime Columbia Basin farmer and rancher, was called home on July 8, 2018 in Richland, Wash. Ed was born May 5, 1925, in Irwin, Idaho, to William and Nelly (Fleming) McKay. He was the youngest of seven children raised in Swan Valley, Idaho.
At the age of 16, Ed enlisted in the United States Navy and was a Frogman (SEAL) in training at Camp Perry, Virginia. A veteran of World War II, he received the Asiatic-Pacific Area Campaign Medal (three stars), American Area Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal and Philippine Liberation Medal (two stars) and two Bronze Stars for his courageous duty while participating with UDT-10 team in more than twenty combat campaigns during his assignment of demining and island surveillance on the Pacific war front. Ed is honored with a plaque of distinction for his team leaving a legacy of victory through valor at the Navy SEAL training facility in Coronado, Calif., where he was able to visit and be reunited with fellow Frogmen in the early 2000s.
Ed married Betty Jean McCullough on March 5, 1948, in Shelley, Idaho. They began farming in the Roza Project in 1949. While in Prosser, they began their family with the birth of their son Shannon in 1949 and daughter Tamara in 1951. A pioneer of farming, Ed and Betty moved to Othello in 1955 where he raised his family. Ed was instrumental in leveling land and establishing farming in the Othello area. Farming for more than 60 years, he raised potatoes, corn, wheat, asparagus and alfalfa with two generations to follow. A true cowboy at heart, Ed was a cattle rancher who shared his love of cows with his grandchildren who carry this on today. Ed was an original member of the Washington State Potato Commission and played a role in bringing potato harvesters to the Basin in the 1950s. Ed also served on the Board of Directors for Northwest Farm Credit Services.
With a love of race horses, Ed and Betty bred and raised very successful quarter horses and thoroughbred horses, racing throughout the west coast. Ed was a co-founder of Sun Downs race track in Kennewick. A member of the Northwest Quarter Horse Association and the California Thoroughbred Association, he loved fast horses and the camaraderie of his horse friends. When Othello Rodeo Association moved to its current location, Ed was instrumental in establishing its existing venue and providing a home to the Adams County Fair. He loved his community; being involved and making a difference was important to Ed. He was a member of the VFW and Elks.
Ed is survived by his daughter Tamara Sackett of Kennewick, Wash. and his daughter-in-law Joleen McKay of Othello, Wash.; grandchildren Stacy and Leonard Aune of LaCrosse, Wash., Michael and Paula McKay of Othello, Wash., Sean Sackett (Sasha) of Kennewick, Wash. and Sara and Kane Gardner of Pasco, Wash.; great-grandchildren Austen Montgomery, Ashtyn, Gunnar, Abree and Gage Aune, Rylee and Myles McKay, Everly and Kamryn Gardner and Elle Sackett; numerous nieces and nephews and the Robert and Guadalupe Campos family of Othello. He was preceded in death by his parents, siblings, wife Betty and son Shannon.
A celebration of life was held Saturday, July 14, 2018, at Bess Hampton Cemetery in Othello at 11 a.m., followed by a luncheon at the Othello Golf Course. The family would like to thank the staff at Fleur De Lis for their loving care of Ed over the past three years. The family suggests memorial gifts be made to your local Veterans of Foreign Wars or the Wounded Warrior Project at www.woundedwarriorproject.org or by mail at Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758817, Topeka, KS 66675-8517.