Jack Brison passed peacefully at the Cottage at Highgate Senior Living in Yakima on May 16. He was 90 years young, born on January 6, 1924 to Nelson and Margaret Brison. He was one of five children. The family raised cattle and vegetable crops on their homestead in the Flathead Valley of Montana. As producers of food, the family was able to survive and help others during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Dad graduated from St. Ignatius High School as an excellent student. He was a gifted athlete serving as captain of the football team and was a baseball and track star nicknamed “Superman.” Shortly after graduation, he married and left Montana to be near family in Washington State. Dad first found a job helping to complete Grand Coulee Dam. Desiring to do his part for his country during World War II, he worked in the shipyards at Everett and Vancouver, Washington, where he welded water tanks for Navy ships built and destined for battle.
At the end of the war, he worked for a while in the lumber industry, then settled in Yakima and started a long career as a salesman. With his keen memory, honesty and hard work ethic, he excelled in that field. He owned and operated Brison’s Sporting Goods Store on 3rd Avenue in Yakima. He served as the manager of Goddard’s Furniture Store in Yakima for many years. Later he became a successful realtor in Yakima.
Our Dad was the consummate outdoors sportsman, who loved hunting and fishing learned while roaming the mountains, lakes and streams of Montana as a boy. He excelled at tying flies, an activity he enjoyed until his late 80s. He expanded those fishing (and boating) abilities during the time he operated a charter boat out of Westport. Dad knew just how to catch any fish that was native to the Northwest, from the smallest perch to the largest salmon.
Dad was a busy man who never liked “sitting on his hands” and who wrung every ounce out of life. Cooking was a special interest and he loved adding his own special flavor to various dishes. He also developed a wide range of building and carpentry skills, putting them to work in his own homes and for others. Perhaps Dad was not the literal “Jack of all trades”, but he was master of many.
In the early 1980s he met Irene Belzer, a very sweet, capable and pretty woman, whose previous years were largely spent as an orchardist’s wife, homemaker, and part-time librarian. After spending time with Dad, Irene began to share his avid interests in these other types of outdoor activities and sports in general. They married in 1983 and spent the next three decades together as they hunted, fished and traveled the western US in their travel trailer. Dad knew how to maneuver that 30-foot trailer into the tightest of RV spaces, from primitive wooded sites to crowded campgrounds. Dad tied flies that he used and sold during their many fishing trips. Irene created beautiful art and handcrafted items both at home and while they traveled. They enjoyed music and loved opportunities to dance. They often entertained family and friends on the road in their trailer and at their home in Yakima.
Jack was a gentle man who loved his many children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. He is survived by his wife Irene, his sister Jean Twichel of Billings, MT, son Gary Brison of Lakewood, CO, daughters Barbara Kirk (Fred) of Green Valley, CA, Gloria Reynolds of Kennewick, WA, Terrie Greiner (John) of Kennewick, Cyndi Richards (Dan) of Medford, OR, and Dawn Hicks (James) of Spokane, WA, grandsons Brandon Day, Ryan Powell, Jon Blomquist, John “Jack” Greiner, Nicholas Fowler, granddaughters, Kelli Taylor, Michelle White, Lizzie Andrews, Ashley Fowler, and eleven great grandchildren.
His marriage to Irene extended his family to include David Belzer (Karen) of Kennewick , Sandi Belzer Brendale (Philip) of Yakima, grandchildren Deborah Johnson (Ben), Bryan Belzer, Ali Soto (Adrian), Joe Connors, and six great grandchildren.
Jack was preceded in death by his parents, Nelson and Margaret Brison, brothers and sisters Annabelle Brison Kerns, Ken Brison, and Robert Brison.
People enjoyed Dad’s natural sense of humor, his enthusiasm for life, and his generosity. Our hearts are breaking at the loss of our Dad who made this world a better place for us all. Rest in peace, Dad, we love you.
Viewing will be 4 to 8 p.m. on Friday, May 23, 2014 at Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home. A Celebration of his life will be held for family and friends on Saturday, May 24, 2014 at 11 a.m. at Langevin-Mussetter Funeral Home, 1010 West Yakima Ave in Yakima, WA. Jack will be laid to rest at West Hills Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, donations in Jack’s name may be made to Memorial Hospice, Cottage in the Meadow.
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