Obituary of Robert Lazelle Tuck

Robert Lazelle “Bob” Tuck passed away on October 20, 2019 after a 10-year-long battle with cancer. 

This beloved champion of nature was born in Seattle on November 15, 1944 to Herbert & Dorothy (Baldwin) Tuck.

He moved to the Yakima area when his family bought a small farm in West Valley. Hunting as a youth with his high school friend Dean sparked a life-long friendship and passion for the natural world. He graduated from West Valley High School in 1963.

Bob’s college years began at Yakima Valley Community College where he met and kept a dedicated group of life-long friends. During his time at University of Montana in 1966, Bob met a sweet soul named Lynn Smith at the UCCF House. Lynn was his great love and they married in June of 1968 shortly before his graduation from Eastern Washington University and commissioning into the US Army.

Bob spent over 30 years working on salmon management and restoration. He spent two decades defending treaty rights for Native Americans with Columbia River InterTribal Fish Commission in Portland, OR and the Yakama Nation in Toppenish, WA.

He was a true blue conservationist and gave so much to the cause of wildlife preservation over the years. He was appointed to Washington’s Fish & Game Commission by Governor Locke in 1998. At his passing he was Board President for Western Wildlife Outreach.

Bob was a co-founder of the Yakima Basin Environmental Education Program (YBEEP) in 1991. He took the reins of the program in 2003. He connected thousands of school children to the important ecological role of salmon in our region through classroom activities, salmon spawning field trips, water quality lessons and a few bad jokes. He was passionate about getting people of all ages out into nature.

Kestrel Hill, his property for 25 years in Selah, WA was a reflection of his deep connection and love for trees and wildlife. Friends and family loved spending time in the forest, meadows and pond that Papa T. lovingly cultivated. He will be thought of each time a red tailed hawk is overhead.

Bob was a dedicated father to three children, Christy Peterson of Vancouver, WA, Stephanie Frisch of Camas, WA and Kerrie Tuck of Dallas, TX. He welcomed their spouses Erik Peterson, Ken Frisch and Patience Spence into the family and eagerly shared adventures with them, too. He was Papa T. to five grandchildren Joseph & Emma Peterson and Cassie, Sydney & Teagan Frisch who loved spending time outside with him.

He had a deep, quiet faith and cared deeply about seeing and serving “the least of these.” Bob also had an insatiable appetite for books and was widely read on history, aviation, the military, wildlife, and hunting. His friends and family will greatly miss all of the history lessons at Papa T.’s knee.

Bob was preceded in death by his parents, Herbert & Dorothy and brother Elton Tuck. He is survived by his wife Lynn, daughters Christy, Stephanie & Kerrie, sister Claire Powell, grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

A celebration of life will be held at the Yakima Arboretum on Sunday, May 3, 2020 from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.  In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to one of the following organizations in his honor; Yakima Basin Environmental Education Program, Western Wildlife Outreach, or the Yakima Valley Regional Library’s Bob Tuck Collection Dedicated Fund.