Lawrence Donald Ledgerwood

Lawrence Donald Ledgerwood ~ Larry, age 84, passed away Tuesday, November 26, 2024. He was born June 11, 1940 in Birch Tree Missouri, the first born of Lawrence J. Ledgerwood and Elaine (Weaver) Ledgerwood.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife Linda (Miller) Ledgerwood, sister Sharon (Ledgerwood) Slaight, sister in law Angela Miller, brothers in law Don Slaight, Henry Pratt, Marvin Miller.

He is survived by his daughters Lynette and Rebecca, his brother Gary (Carol) Ledgerwood, sister Carol Pratt, brother Lowell (Pauline) Ledgerwood, and sister in law Shirley (Lee) Koger. He is also survived by nieces, nephews, numerous cousins, and his good friend Mike Marsyla.

 He married Linda Miller October 23, 1971 in Seattle.

 Larry graduated from Sunnyside High School in 1958; he received his B.A. from Central Washington State College in Ellensburg, 1971 – now Central WA University; his Masters in Library Science from Portland State.

 After completing a year of college, our father found a job at Boeing, packaging parts to be sent out. A chance conversation with a coworker about needing a place to stay is when Mike Marsyla entered the scene. They became ‘bachelor buddies’ and have remained lifelong friends.

 Larry enlisted in the Army April 29th, 1963 (3 yr. term), two days before the term of enlistment shifted to four years. Our father was stationed at Fort Mead, Maryland, with a stint at Fort Devens, Massachusetts for his ASA training, and the required NSA training. After completing his training, our father stayed stateside for a length of time, due to the unfortunate assassination of the president.

 After a long wait, he received his post to West Germany, Frankfurt am Mein, where he served as a Teletype operator. Like any good American soldier, he experienced, with fellow service men, all the country had to offer, especially the beer, and screaming down the Autobahn in his 1960’s era Volkswagen Beetle.

 Larry, attaining the rank SP5 – E5, received an honorable discharge April 28, 1966, and opted for a European out; he traveled around the continent, and finally flew out of London, arriving home just in time for his Weaver grandparent’s 50th anniversary.

  After being discharged, he utilized the GI bill and enrolled at CWSC, where he met Linda – especially after needing to borrow a text book, which she had. 

 Larry was a well-liked and loved individual, who constantly acquired knowledge, and was our family’s loquacious social butterfly. 

He received his Oregon teaching certificate in 1971, and taught a sixth grade class at Nehalem Elementary, in Nehalem OR, plus coached a soccer team. 

In 1974, Larry began working at Kelso High School in the library as the media specialist; 1981 he began teaching Social Studies classes, and by the early 90s he was strictly teaching U.S. History, a mandatory class for Juniors in WA state.

He started the International Relations Club (IRC), bringing exchange students and high school students together, fostering more understanding of other cultures and to develop friendships; also serving as the high school AFS contact for the exchange students. We can’t exactly pinpoint when he became the junior class advisor, but somehow Larry managed to sneak prom decorations home for his daughter Rebecca when she was young. 

He was always furthering his education throughout his teaching career. 

Retiring from teaching in 2001, Larry started working for Deege Insurance, and after taking classes and passing the boards, he worked with seniors, starting with investments and then finding his niche with navigating all the ins and outs of Medicare signups.

Having spent 3 years in the Army, experiencing West Germany, Larry was bit by the travel bug. With his wife Linda, the two of them raised their daughters as future American’s abroad, sending both girls on exchange years their junior years in high school.

Larry enjoyed traveling, and would plan out summer trips, making sure there were plenty of educational stops and some fun activities. The family traveled into Canada for the 86 Expo, and our parents forgot documentation for the kids, but the border guards, taking a look at the two girls, decided we couldn’t be anyone but theirs.

 The summer of 1988 Larry was a delegate for Kelso Education Association and hence, Washington Ed. Assoc and NEA; the National Education Association Conference was held in New Orleans. Dad planned and planned the five week trip, and the family went in the pickup and camper. Many a summer vacation was spent traveling, exploring: British Columbia and Alberta provinces; all the western states – including the true Four Corners; Disneyland and Universal Studios; a trip to Missouri to see family, plus countless more.

He and his wife were able to visit Lynette in China, where she taught for a year, and also able to visit Rebecca in South Korea, where she taught for a year.

 Throughout his life, our father was interested in his family’s history, and at one point got a DNA test. Unofficially the family historian, Larry took it upon himself for a couple years to create a calendar with the Ledgerwood descendants listed from William Ledgerwood, SR to the youngest born at the time. He even helped Linda with creating a calendar with her family descendants for a few years. 

 Larry was a wonderful father who taught his two daughters many life skills about cars, hauling hay, creating fire wood, power tools, building, and many other activities. He was supportive of whatever his daughters wanted to become.

The Celebration of Life service will be Friday January 17th, at 11am, location is Emmanuel Lutheran Church; 2218 Kessler Blvd, Longview WA 98632. Please, no flowers.