Greg Alan Werden passed away at the age of 52 on Sunday December 2, 2012, at his residence in Sedro-Woolley, WA.
He was born to Herbert and Joan (Sutherland) Werden on July 17th, 1960, in Upland, CA, the fifth of eight children.
He was raised in Fontana, CA, and graduated from Fontana High School in 1980. Soon after, Greg joined his Mother and Grandmother in Oak Harbor, WA, where he met his wife to be, Brenda Huff. They were married in May 1983, and had one daughter, Brandie Lynne Werden.
After settling in Sedro-Woolley, Greg worked as a chef and a mechanic until he began his career with Brown & Root at Shell (now Tesoro) oil refinery in Anacortes, WA. He became a heavy equipment operator and especially loved working with cranes, becoming a highly skilled and requested operator. This is also where he acquired the nickname “Bones”, due to his slender build, which stuck with him from then on.
From a young age Greg’s passion was working with vehicles. He could fix anything and always kept his family and friends on the road. While he always had a supped up car or truck, his greatest accomplishment was his black 1967 Chevy Chevelle that he restored and customized, and received many trophies for. He also had a love for karaoke and “The King.”
In July of 2003, Greg married Tess Carroll. Sadly, only weeks later, he was involved in a car accident that left him as a quadriplegic. He fought for nine years and endured countless hardships during that time, and he is finally now at peace.
The family would like to thank everyone who helped care for Greg over the years.
Greg is survived by his daughter, Brandie Bruch (Kaleb); sisters Debora Criner (Mike), Kathy Lungren, Pam Sande and Jacoline Werden; brothers, Mark Werden and BJ Werden; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. He was preceded in death by his father Herbert, mother Joan, and brother Robert Werden.
Memorial Services will be held on Sunday, December 16th, 2012 at 12:30 pm at the Community Bible Church in Concrete, WA.
We thought the world of Greg, on our visits with him, he was always positive and up beat, he was very intelligent and had a great sense of humor. He would call and ask Daryl to come visit (pappa smurf), they enjoyed talking about work at the refinery, Daryl told him, he was the best equipment operator he ever knew. Greg said, he wished more workers and friends would come visit, he spent most of his time watching his hundreds of movies, but he also said, he knew everyone was busy with their lives. We are glad he’s in a better place, but our hearts are heavy, he was one of a kind, smart, personable and of course, so handsome. Until we meet again, thanks for your true friendship.
Bones, was always a popular addition to any job where we had the pleasure of his presence. RIP Bones from the folks at Industrial Resources.
I worked with Greg for many years operating cranes at the Tesoro Refinery, and always enjoyed his company, his great skill and professional attitude toward his job, and most of all his fabulous sense of humor and ability to quickly create a practical joke. Many times we were left in tears laughing at his games and schemes. Everyone enjoyed having him around and having him work on their jobs, and people would often ask specifically for him.
We as a crane-operating group were devastated when we heard the news of his accident, as I am now to hear of his passing. What a great guy to have known.