To our dear father, Robert Bruce Ericksen, who passed away on November 8, 2021. You fought to the end and left behind a family filled with a deep sense of loss without you in our lives.
Born in Oakland, California on June 26, 1944, you grew up fighting every step of the way. As a child, you battled asthma, polio and scarlet fever. As a teenager, you made your way through some of California’s toughest schools, finally entering college and attending the University of Southern California. You’ve surfed the spots of Huntington Beach, fished for sharks off Rainbow Pier in Long Beach, and raced dragsters in Sacramento. But the stories of your youth were those of a different man than the one I knew.
The man I knew was a counselor and a friend. You connected with people everywhere you went. A quick trip to the store can take an hour due to the conversations you would have with strangers. You turned your gift into a career, and eventually a business, as an executive recruiter in the retail industry. But you have never measured success, your own or that of others, in a traditional sense; you measured success by the person’s strength of character. Your life was filled with swimming champions, decorated war heroes, world famous architects and business leaders and yet you would come home and tell your family about the interesting janitor or store clerk that you were. have met that day. You have always found greatness in ordinary people. It was your gift to make people believe in themselves and if you could sprinkle your faith in Christ, you did.
You married your wife, Linda, in 1976 and stayed with her for 44 years, having two children who loved you. In the early ’90s, you moved us from California to a sleepy Oregon Coast town to give us a better life outside of town. You’ve seen my sister and I graduate from college and become professionally successful. In mid-2020 you moved to Spokane to live with us and your six grandchildren. The last 15 months of your life have been calm, spending time talking with friends, watching movies with your grandchildren, playing card and board games, and praying with us all. evenings. You loved your family: your wife, your children, your brothers, your grandparents and your parents. You have been deeply touched by those you have lost, having lived long enough to regret and loved enough to leave a permanent mark in our hearts.
Your faith in the Lord has taken you through many difficult times, including countless physical battles. Even though you knew it better, sometimes you thought your sins were too great to be forgiven. You were wrong. The Lord has kept you through the struggles of this life and taken you when you were ready and the place He had prepared for you was complete. After the many battles throughout your life, your lungs finally gave way and you were brought home to be with our Lord Jesus Christ.
In trying to capture who you were, I find myself lost. Guess what I can say is that you are the man who has saved me countless times, given others a second chance, and counseled so many people through life’s challenges, even though you have never been an “advisor”, just a friend. Your wisdom and love will be missed forever.
You are survived by your wife Linda, your son and daughter Cameron and Christel, your daughter-in-law Katie and your six grandchildren.
A private memorial service will be held.
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Posted by Heritage Funeral & Cremation on November 17, 2021.