Ernest T. “Ernie” Tyree, 96 a longtime Sedro-Woolley resident, passed away on Monday, March 9, 2015.
Ernie was born on December 8, 1918 in Lyman, WA the son of Roby & Hettie (Latham) Tyree. He was raised in the Hickson community near the Samish River and attended school in Burlington, graduating from Burlington High School in 1937.
Ernie worked in the logging industry for a while until enlisting in the U.S. Army during WW II, where he was stationed in Africa serving in communications for much of the war. After his discharge he returned to the Skagit Valley where he met the love of his life, Beverly Klaus, and they were united in marriage on August 17, 1946.
They made their home in Sedro-Woolley and he worked as an electrician for Northern State Hospital for a time until beginning a long career in telecommunications with the Skagit Valley Telephone Company, (later Contel and Verizon). He worked all aspects for the phone company; installing and climbing poles, laying wires and dispatching equipment for over 40 years until his retirement in the mid 1980’s.
Ernie had a gift for playing music, playing since childhood. He played in several bands over the years, playing country music at venues all around the Northwest, but mostly at the Skagit Valley Grange. He also gave guitar lessons to many all around the Skagit Valley. His spare time, other than music, found him in his back yard tending to his abundant vegetable garden.
Ernie is survived by his wife of 68 years, Beverly; his son, Ron Tyree and his wife Gloria of Eugene, OR and his daughter, Diane Dodd and her husband Mike of Blaine, WA; 3 grandchildren, , Julie Dodd, Trent Tyree and Lauren Countess; a great-grandson, Ryder Ness; a sister, Valerie Terwillger and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; son, Jerry, sisters, Violet Tyree and Grace Johnson and his brother, Robert (June Tyree.
The family requests that memorials in honor of Ernie be made to the Sedro-Woolley Band Parents Group – Instrument Fund c/o Sedro-Woolley High School, 1235 Third Street, Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284.
Funeral Services will be held on Friday, March 13, 2015 at 1:30 PM at Lemley Chapel in Sedro-Woolley with Pastor Wendy Tingley officiating. Interment with Military Honors will follow at the Sedro-Woolley Union Cemetery.
On behalf of the SWHS Band Parent Group, I would like to express our sincere condolences to Mr. Tyree’s family, and our heartfelt gratitiude for asking that memorial donations be made to our group. Much of the students’ uniform and instrument needs must be met through fundraising, so our budget is always tight. Thank you so much for thinking of us and of Sedro-Woolley’s young musicians. Mr. Tyree’s love of music is something that will live on in them.
i have a lot of memories of Ernie and Bev. And even at the age I am now (57), it doesn’t seem right to call them by their first names. They will always be ” Jerry’s Mom and Dad to me. I am thankful to have had the Tyree family in my life and for everything they did for me. And for everything they put up with from me.
Thank you. I will never forget you “Jerry’s Dad”. Mr Ernie Tyree
Scott Bauder
Sorry for your loss we will miss him he gave me my start in the musicin the valley I willbe ever thankfull
I’m sorry to hear that Ernie has passed Bev. Fortunately I was able to express to him during the garage sale how important he was in the shape my life took, not only with the early guitar lessons and literally hundreds of gigs but also with the fatherly advice he offered me from time to time. I was hoping to be able to attend his memorial today however I am battling a viral infection and will be needing to rest today. Peace be with you.
I am in shock over this. I just happened to look on the Skagit Assessors web site to see if Erny and Bev still lived nearby where my great aunt and uncle, Ginger and Art Thompson used to live, and noticed that their property was listed as being owned by a Trust. So, I just happened to take it upon myself to see if Erny may have past away, and I see his obituary in the paper. Just passing away 3 days ago.
Erny was a long time friend of my family. And, in his later years, he even helped book my father’s band, Fusion, consisting of David Ferguson (my father), Jim Reynalds, Larry Vance, and Terry Nelson for many years. He even sold me my current drum kit about 15 years. We want to send our deepest sympathies towards Erny’s family and especially his wife, Bev.
I am sorry for Bev’s lost and will be missing Ernie a bunch.
Hugs to Grand Aunt Bev. and God Spend Uncle Ernie.
Love Sharon
Sorry to hear of Ernie’s passing. He and my Dad (Digger) spent many hours playing music together and they had a great respect for each others talents. I can recall enjoying their jam sessions sneaking down the stairs to listen to them play. Of course I was supposed to be sleeping. His Music will be missed. Dennis London
So sorry to learn about Ernie’s passing. He was the source of a good number of happy memories. He would organize pickup groups to perform at Merrill Gardens and had a clever system for transporting his bulky PA equipment; I believe Beverly served as “treasurer.” He was rock-solid on bass and recruited musicians who also were a joy to play with, such as Walt Germain, Mark Kelly, Dale Steele, etc. I was honored that he included me in a number of those performances, and am sad to know that there will be no more of them.
I am very sorry to learn of the loss of Mr. Tyree. Although I didn’t know him personally, it is always sad to learn that a family has lost a loved one. Many families have found encouraging articles on jw.org and maybe this website can help your family too. I hope the ‘God of all comfort’ will help your family during this sad time. (1 Corinthians 1:3,4)
Sorry to hear about Ernie. I had the good fortune of playing a number of music jobs with Ernie. He was a very good musician and played many instruments (guitar, bass, drums etc.) Most of the jobs we played together
Ernie played the drums and did an excellent job. He will be missed and so will his musical talent. Walt Roder