The Daily Herald
http://www.heraldnet.com
Glenn Harvey, age 70, of Marysville, Washington, died peacefully at home the morning of July 7, 2020 after a brief non-COVID illness. He is survived by Nancy, his wife of nearly 48 years, along with his sons, Owen and Loren (Michelle) and two grandsons, Nathan and Cameron.
Glenn was born November 7, 1949 in Waltham, Massachusetts to Dean and Telveda "Tillie" Harvey. Because of his father's career in the Air Force, Glenn, grew up and attended school in many places around the United States, as well as Goose Bay, Labrador. He graduated from Wheatland Union High School in Wheatland, California. After high school he attended the University of Washington, first studying journalism, but earning a degree in economics. The UW is where he met his future wife, Nancy Stone; they were married in 1972.
The greatest theme of Glenn's life was his concern for the safety and rights of workers. He felt that everyone deserved safety, equality, and fairness. He first worked in the world of retail at F. W. Woolworth and Fred Meyer; fairly soon became a staunch union advocate with the Retail Clerks Union. Later he began a career with Washington State Department of Labor & Industries where he was charged with inspecting job sites for safety violations. The job was a perfect fit, not only because of his concern for the safety of workers, but also because of his talent for detail and his sense of fairness in dealing with both employers and employees. His goal was not to catch infractions but to use education to avoid infractions in the first place. Keeping employees from being injured was always at the top of his mind.
That attention to detail, the perseverance, and his concern with safety led to Glenn being presented with a Good Citizen Award by the Marysville City Council in 1998. He and Nancy had noticed that traffic issues in their neighborhood were creating dangerous situations. Glenn followed through with a detailed letter accompanied by photos to bring about the needed changes.
One of Glenn's great skills was dealing with technology. He was a self-taught whiz at computers and was always willing to spend time helping people, whether friends or family, who were less comfortable with technology. Time and again, his knowledge and patience helped others through frustrations with computers and other devices. He looked at each situation as a puzzle to be solved using curiosity, determination, and, again, patience. Eventually he was recognized professionally for these skills as he became an Information Technology Specialist 4 at Labor and Industries. He helped co-workers in Everett, Mount Vernon, and Bellingham use technology more efficiently.
Those same personality traits made him a great photographer, both in video and still formats. He and Nancy traveled all throughout the United States, visiting every state but Alaska. They also toured Great Britain and had a wonderful trip to Italy. Despite traveling great distances, his very favorite was an annual trip to Portland, Oregon. All of these trips were extensively documented in his photographs and videos, which he loved to share.
Glenn took much pleasure in his time online. He was known for posting political essays that were always thoughtful and never rude. He could listen and respond gently to those of any political persuasion with discourse that was a model for democracy bringing together opinions of many. He also spent significant time helping to organize reunions for his high school even from seven hundred miles away, which was appreciated by his former classmates.
Being a father, grandfather and friend were all important to Glenn. His patience when giving help, his wonderful/terrible puns, when discussing personal or world events, his ability to sort out details to solve difficulties, and even his deep love of chocolate will be missed by all who knew him.
Due to the pandemic no memorial is planned. In lieu of flowers, consider donations to the Marysville Food Bank (P.O. Box 917, Marysville, Washington, 98270) or to CJD Foundation Inc. (3634 W. Market Street, Suite 110, Akron OH 44333).
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