Aris Frederick

Aris Martin Frederick, 88, of Wenatchee passed away peacefully of natural causes on October 6, 2023, just days short of his 89th birthday. Aris was born October 16, 1934, in Ellensburg. His parents were Elmer and Stephanie Frederick. In addition to school and helping in his parents’ motel and gas station, camping, hunting and fishing were a big part of Aris’s younger years. Aris graduated from Ellensburg High School in 1952 and stayed in Ellensburg to attend Central Washington State College. He played tennis throughout his college years and captained Central’s varsity tennis team in his senior year. When he was a junior, Aris met a Cle Elum girl named Doris Faudree in a ballroom dance class. (Because students were lined up alphabetically, mom and dad met because they stood next to each other!) They fell in love and married the following summer. Aris and Doris were married for almost 60 years before mom’s passing. Aris graduated from Central with a Business Administration degree, worked in Seattle for a few years then landed a job back in Ellensburg with the Darigold dairy co-op. The Frederick family rapidly grew to include five kids. Aris transferred with the company from Ellensburg to Wenatchee in 1969—and Wenatchee was his home ever since. In 1980, Aris left Darigold and went back to college at CWU to earn his Bachelor of Science in Accounting. It was a tough two-year grind for a guy in his middle 40s, but he did it. After graduating, Dad started an accounting practice, which he operated for 35 years. He greatly enjoyed being an accountant. An account of Aris’s life would not be complete without mentioning what Jesus Christ meant to him. In the early 1970s, Jesus knocked on the door of Aris’s life and dad answered. He served the Lord as a Bible teacher and elder at various times. He also volunteered his accounting skills to ministries and organizations. He enjoyed studying his Bible, and he left a marked-up Bible to prove it. Aris was an accomplished hunter for most of his life—a skill he learned from his father. He was naturally gifted with excellent far-sighted vision, which meant he could spot and identify game like few others. He loved hunting elk, deer, ducks and pheasants with Ellensburg guys he grew into manhood with, including Sam Schille, Ralph Ferguson, Walt Panchysyn, Claude Gove and others. In the early 1990s, Aris and Doris went in together with friends Sam and Patty and bought property on the north end of Badger Mountain. Over a few years, Dad and Sam (with help from sons, sons-in-law and friends) built a cabin on the property. Dad loved to spend time at the cabin and property. Aris served as Secretary and later Treasurer of the local property owner’s association for approximately 30 years. Aris loved his family. He enjoyed a relaxing game of pinochle while eating apple strudel made from his mom’s old family recipe. If a strudel wasn’t available, a good pumpkin pie would do. As he and mom grew older, family reunions on the Oregon coast or in the mountains of Montana and Idaho were special times. Aris was preceded in death by his beloved wife Doris in 2015, his parents, and his brother Steve. He is survived by his children Gary (Paula) of Cashmere; Doug (Michelle) of Spokane; Ken (Marylin) of Meridian, Idaho; Kerill Woodward (Jack) of East Wenatchee; and Chris (Marla) of Colorado Springs, Colorado. He is survived by his 17 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Aris is also survived by his beloved lady-friend Sharley Anderson of Wenatchee and his dear sister Phyllis Wenger (Dick) of Sequim, WA as well as by many nephews, nieces and cousins. Dad was our family patriarch. He was a solid, quiet man of deep convictions, strong traditional values, and wisdom. We will miss him, but he’s doing fine. A memorial service will be held to celebrate Aris’s life on October 28, 2023 in Wenatchee, at the Sage hills church 1601 5th St., the memorial will start at 1:00 pm until 4:00 pm.

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Aris Frederick

October 16, 1934 - October 6, 2023