Dennis Acosta

March 23, 1929 – August 20, 2010

Dennis (Dionicio) Acosta, age 81, passed away peacefully in Tacoma, Washington, on Friday, August 20, 2010. He was born March 23, 1929, in El Campo, Texas, to Enriqueta and Dionicio Acosta. He was the eleventh out of twelve children (Guadalupe, Dora, Juana, Elva, Enriqueta, Felix, Delia, Gloria, Elma, Noah and a sister who passed away in infancy).

When he was young he was often called Little Nicho or Nichoito.

He and his family lived in Texas until age eleven when they moved to Los Angeles, California. In October 1950 he entered the army. By the time he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1953 he had earned the rank of Sergeant. He returned to California and met Joan DeYoung. He married her in 1959. After the birth of their first child, Victoria, Dennis and Joan moved to Washington State on the recommendation of Dennis’s older brother, Felix who was all ready living there. They lived in Lakewood, having two more children, Doreen and Phillip, and in 1977 the family moved to Puyallup.

He had several jobs throughout his early life including managing a company and as an architect. He eventually found his way to Sears where he worked as a top salesman for the company. He worked at Sears until retiring in 1989. In 1990 he and Joan divorced. Dennis then moved to Tacoma for the remainder of his life.

Dennis loved to learn. He took scuba diving lessons and was certified and also earned his real estate license. He went through the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department Community Academy. Dennis was proud to be a member of the Lakewood Elks. Dennis taught his own three children how to fish, play cribbage, and play chess. All three activities were his favorite things to do.

Of all Dennis’ achievements he found the most joy in his four grandchildren (Brandon, Taylor, Jadon and McKenna). He shared his love of the outdoors with them teaching them how to fish, hike, and camp. He willingly spent hours sitting by their side waiting for a fish to nibble the bait. He taught all four grandchildren the magic fishing poem, “Fishy fishy in the water, bite my hook like you otta.” He also made sure that his grandchildren had a sense of humor introducing them to the Three Stooges at a young age. He was a man who believed that making memories with his grandchildren was paramount. He would tease, joke, laugh and play making sure all his grandchildren knew he loved them.

Dennis is survived by his sisters, Elva Burnett and Guadalupe (Lou) Valencia, and his children, Vikki Acosta, Doreen (Russ) Kasselman, and Phil Acosta. He is also survived by four grandchildren, Brandon (Lacey) Smith, Taylor Smith, Jadon Kasselman and McKenna Kasselman.

A graveside service will be held at 3 p.m., Friday, September 3, at Woodbine Cemetery, 2323 9th Street Southwest, Puyallup, WA 98373. Relatives and friends are welcome at the service. A potluck reception will be held immediately following from 4-630pm (address and map available at the service).