Alan Will Ruesch

Former Mercer Island resident Alan Will Ruesch, 58, passed away on October 25, 2013. He was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, March 10th, 1955 to Ada and the late Melvin Ruesch.

Alan graduated from Metuchen High School in 1973, where he starred as King Leontes in his senior play, “A Winter’s Tale.” He graduated from Rutgers University in 1977 and received a bachelors’ degree in Education. He went on to receive a Masters’ of Business at the University of Washington in 1985. After dancing and romancing Diane Kastern at Seattle’s annual Folk Life Festival, they married in 1990 and raised their family on Mercer Island.

On Labor Day of 1977, Alan found himself in Seattle and decided to stick around. It was here where he began his life’s adventures. He parlayed his degree into a substitute teaching job with the Seattle School District. He then continued his adventure on the sea when he took employment as a book-keeper on a fish processing ship in Dutch Harbor, Alaska. During his free time he explored the Alaskan wildernesss, where he fine tuned his appetite for salmon and all things Pacific Northwestern. With an itch for knowledge, Alan then set off on his next pursuit: higher education. This came in the form of an M.B.A. degree from the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.

After two years of living the corporate lifestyle working for Diebold, Alan decided to follow his true passion: building homes. In 1988, he bought and remodeled his first home on Phinney Ridge in self-taught fashion for he was the original “D.I.Y.” guy. An avid Monopoly player, Alan went on to bring those skills to real life when he began purchasing properties and building homes on them.

A history buff, Alan’s other hobbies included reading, sailing, playing “hearts,” kayaking, hiking, snowshoeing at Scottish Lakes, and enjoying the rain.

Alan is survived by his wife Diane; his daughters Samantha and Lark, his mother Ada, brother David and sisters Beth Steucek and Jill Ruesch-Lane and many nieces and nephews and friends. Alan drafted architectural plans and built or remodeled dozens of homes in the Puget Sound area. Alan leaves a legacy of craftsmanship and beauty to all those who reside in them, now and for generations to come.

A memorial service to commemorate Alan’s life will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, November 23 at the University Unitarian Church in Seattle, WA.