Gustav (Gus) Raaum “The Viking,” born to Sigurd and Ingeborg Raaum, January 20, 1926 in Brevik, Norway, passed away December 28, 2014 in Mercer Island, WA surrounded by his family.

Gus was predeceased by his loving wife of 62 years, Claire. He is survived by his three children, David (Patricia Lorenzo), Christian (Joanie Bishop), and Lisbeth Raaum Harris (John). A strong family man, he was very proud of his children. Special to his heart were his six grandchildren, Christopher, Jennifer, Allison, Erik, Courtney, Erika and great grandson Jackson. “Farfar” (Norwegian for father’s father), as he was affectionately called, spent many hours watching them grow up. Niece Mette Raaum and nephew Fred Raaum, both of Sweden, as well as brother S.F. Dick Raaum of Sequim, also survive Gus.

His family moved to Lillehammer, Norway early in his childhood, several years before the German invasion and the Nazi occupation. During those nine years in Lillehammer, Gus took part in high school sports (soccer, track and speed skating), but thanks to great coaching, he excelled in ski jumping. Boycotting Nazi-sponsored ski jumping competitions, Gus trained and competed in secret during the war.

In 1946, Gus won the junior class in ski jumping at the famous Holmenkollen ski competition in Oslo, once considered the World Series of ski jumping. More than 100,000 spectators, including the Norwegian Royal family watched this post-war event. Overnight, Gus became a national hero. This resulted in a trip the following year touring the U.S. with the Norwegian Ski Jumping Team. The team visited Seattle and with his “Viking” spirit of risk taking, he ended up staying. Knowing little English, he entered the University of Washington where he earned a degree in accounting and received his CPA. While a member of the UW Ski Team, he won the NCAA national ski jumping title twice, while also earning All American honors. Gus was proud to be the only skier ever to be inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame (1992). It was through his membership as a Sigma Nu that he met his wife to be, Claire Thompson, who was also a student at the UW and a Kappa girl. Their romance blossom ed and they were married not long after their graduation in 1950.

After 17 years as a CPA in Seattle, Gus decided to try resort management. He moved the family to Jackson Hole in 1967 to work as vice-president and general manager for Paul McCollister at the Jackson Hole Ski Corporation, and was soon promoted to president. In 1970 he was recruited by Chet Huntley to oversee the development of the Big Sky of Montana resort near Bozeman. Eight years later, Gus returned to Seattle to join old friend Harold Hill to form Hill-Raaum Investment Company, which later became Hill-Raaum-Pietromonaco.

Always quick to mention his Norwegian heritage, he embraced many Norwegian customs, food and culture. Gus was a founder of the Nordic Heritage Museum in Ballard, and a proud member of the Norwegian American Chamber of Commerce, Norwegian Commercial Club and Sons of Norway. He was very active within the international ski world, including 16 years as the Chairman of the FIS Ski Jumping Committee. He officiated and attended seven Winter Olympic Games and seven World Ski Championships as well as national and regional ski jumping competitions. In 1980, Gus was Chief of Competition for ski jumping at the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. He received numerous awards and recognition for his involvement in organized skiing. He was elected to the US National Ski Hall of Fame in 1980. He also served as president of HK, an exclusive and somewhat mysterious worldwide ski-oriented friendship society that includes his friend King Harald of Norway.

Gus was past president and 30-year member of Mercer Island Rotary Club. In addition to skiing, his hobbies included golf, fly-fishing, attending Husky football games, and sailing on his 20-foot Ranger, the Uff Da.

A memorial service will be held at the First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, 1717 Bellevue Way, on Tuesday, January 6th, at 1:00 PM. In lieu of flowers, a donation may be sent to the Mercer Island Rotary Foundation, PO Box 1, Mercer Island, WA 98040.