Larry Chartier

Larry Wayne “Lars” Chartier 63 of Yakima passed away at Cottage in the Meadow, July, 2, 2017 surrounded by his family who loved and cherished him. He fought a three and a half year battle with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma. He never once quit fighting. Larry was born March 3, 1954 to Lawrence and Lillie Chartier. Larry was number eight out of eleven children. Larry attended St. Paul Cathedral School grades one through eight. He then attended Carrol High and Davis High. In 1980 he went to work at John I Haas, Inc. where he worked in the union for ten years and then he spent the remainder of his years as Extract Packaging Manager. He retired from Haas in May of 2016. Larry married his best friend, Kathie on July 28, 1984. In 1993 they traveled to Cali, Columbia, South America where they adopted Ian when he was five and a half months old. He was the greatest joy of their lives. In 2005, they again experienced that beautiful joy when they adopted Isabella when she was only two days old. Ian and Bella were Larry’s heart and soul. He helped coach Ian in soccer and then became Bella’s soccer coach and he formed the team he named “Lil Gators”. He was always helping with school projects. Legos were a part of the floor and along with Ian and Bella, they created some pretty amazing things. Larry was so creative whether it was his legendary Halloween pumpkins he carved or his sand castles he made at the beach. If you were around Larry then you know he was all about laughter and the funny side of life. His office at work and his computer area at home were always surrounded by Dilbert, The Far Side, Sci Fi things, his huge candy jar that was always full, and his collections. We will all miss his humor and his funny stories. He was giving, compassionate and an inspiration during his illness. These words from the servant song have a special meaning to us. “I will weep when you are weeping. When you laugh, I’ll laugh with you. I will share your joy and sorrow till we’ve seen this journey through.” Larry is survived by his wife Kathie, son Ian, Daughter Bella, sisters: Phyllis Trog, Sandra Chartier, Eva Chartier (Don), Marilyn Chartier, Carla Thieme (Ken), Joann Cook (Dale); brother Dennis Chartier (Betty), and beloved Schnauzer Ernie Larry is preceded in death by his father Lawrence, mother Lillie, brothers Norman and Niel, sister Lila, mother-in-law Opal Waltman, sister-in-law Deb Ketferle, and nephew Patrick Ketferle. We would like to thank Dr. Albert Brady, our hospice nurses, Julia and Caitlin, our aide Yevette. the great staff at Cottage in the Meadow and the nurses and volunteers at North Star Lodge. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made to any adoption agency or child cancer center, in care of Valley Hills Funeral Home (2600 Business Lane, Yakima, WA 98901) A Vigil will be held Thursday, July 20, 2017 at 5:30 at St. Paul Cathedral Chapel. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Friday, July 21, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. at St Paul Cathedral. Inurnment will follow at West Hills Memorial Park. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Larry Chartier, please visit our flower store.