Obituary: Johnstone, Ian Robert Berkeley
Age 54
Attended St. Anne’s Grade School and graduated from Gresham High School and Linfield College.
A man who lived his life full speed, in the highest gear at all times, regardless of the obstacles in front of him.
His involvement with the world in which he lived and the community around him reached further than any of us could comprehend, and included more than what could be summarized with four inches of space.
Even as a young boy he worked to help his family.
He was a Gresham Paper Boy working the morning route in his neighborhood, an Elmer’s Pancake House fryer cook and dishwasher all through high school and college, and the Director of Food Services at SAGA.
He obtained a full ride scholarship to Linfield as a soccer style kicker, playing four years for the Cats.
On June 8, 1985 he married Angela Marie Byrd after what began as a tense relationship at Carroll College when he was working with SAGA Food Services.
They hit the thirty year mark this year.
He is more than a list of programs he took part in, or companies he worked for.
He is the lives he touched within these programs, whether it be through his 30+ years of coaching Soccer, with kids ranging from 9 years to 19, or his leadership at Cenex Zip Trip and the organizations they partnered with, like the Salvation Army’s Backpacks for Kids, Mead School District’s Cat Scramble and Big Cat Wrestling, and Vanessa Behan Nursery.
Supportive of the Spokane Youth Soccer, Skyhawks, Shadow and WA Olympic Development, molding future lives and embracing a sport he loved above all others.
He was the definition of poise and wisdom, providing impromptu lessons to generations both above and below him.
He never wanted to be the center of attention, but always succeeded in guiding from the background with unmeasurable decisiveness and confidence.
An insatiable appetite to right the inequalities of the world, and give back, is what drove him to do the things he did, and help the people he helped.
He loved to travel the world, learning all its intricacies and nuances, and about the people that made up those subtle differences.
He loved to be with his family, spending any free time he could with them, keeping both him and them busy with anything and everything that could be done.
He is survived by his wife, Angela; his children, Chancellor and Olivia; his brothers, Peter and Colin, and their spouses, along with numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews and many friends.
Preceded in death by his son, Spencer, and his parents, Monica and Anthony Johnstone.
The Celebration of his Life will occur at St. Joseph’s Parish, 3720 E. Colbert Rd., Colbert, WA 99005, on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 at 11:00 AM.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Spokane Salvation Army.
Please visit www.HennesseyFuneralHomes.com to share your thoughts and memories with our family.