Obituary of Howard Thomas Bullpitt

Howard Thomas Bullpitt passed away in Olympia, Washington, on September 20, 2018, after a brief illness. He was born on November 8, 1927, in McKenna, Washington, to Thomas Bullpitt, who immigrated to the United States from England, and Lillie (Hansen) Bullpitt, who was born in Colorado. Howard, his two older brothers, Norman and Vernon, and his younger sister, Hazel, enjoyed growing up east of Olympia, first in McKenna and then in Yelm before moving to a farm near Rainier. Howard graduated from Rainier High School in 1946. He remained very close to his family throughout his life and reminisced frequently about his rural upbringing, but didn’t miss the endless work of farming. He always enjoyed being in open spaces, whether out hunting with his brothers or sailing on Puget Sound.

Howard served two years in the U.S. Army, which included active duty in the Korean War. He worked at an Olympia area plywood mill and then as a data processor for the State of Washington until 1963, when he began a rewarding career as an instructor at Olympia Vocational Technical Institute (now South Puget Sound Community College). Howard’s data processing and computer programming classes spanned the evolution of computers, beginning in the early days of room-sized mainframes, tedious languages, and punch-cards. By his retirement in 1991, his classrooms were filled with what were then considered to be state-of-the-art desktop computers. He would often speak fondly of his students and always enjoyed seeing them in his retirement. 

Howard married his wife, Dorna, on June 5, 1976. They enjoyed vacations sailing the inland waters from Olympia up into British Columbia, Canada, and were highly competitive in South Puget Sound area sailing races in his Catalina 27 and, later, a Cal 29. Howard was a founding member of the South Sound Sailing Society and later served as commodore of that organization. He and Dorna also spent many vacations playing on golf courses all over Washington and Oregon.

Howard was a staunch conservative who wasn’t shy about speaking his mind. He enjoyed conversations with those who didn’t necessarily share his beliefs without undermining their dignity. Howard earned his Bachelor of Arts at The Evergreen State College, where he discovered a passion for working with clay. He bought a potter’s wheel and a kiln and enjoyed giving gifts of his creations and selling his pottery at bazaars around the Olympia area. Howard was a long-time member of the Olympia Elks Lodge, and he enjoyed the comradery of volleyball mornings at the Olympia Community Center. He played volleyball every Tuesday and Thursday, right up until the week before his death. Howard also took flying lessons and was a lifelong learner. He was a voracious reader of books about world history and religions. He also enjoyed reading Westerns and liked to play his guitar and sing cowboy ballads.

Howard was preceded in death by his parents, Thomas and Lillie; his brothers, Norman and Vernon; and sister-in-law, Corinne. He is survived by his wife, Dorna; his sister, Hazel; sister-in-law, Sue; niece, Jean Litzler; nephew, James Bullpitt; three step-daughters, Dori Ayers (Slone), Linda Slone and her husband, Jim Shaffer-Bauck, and Julie Slone and her husband, Bill Bryce; along with eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Howard was interested in and contributed to a broad range of organizations. Gifts in his memory may be made to National Parkinson Foundation (200 SE 1^st St., Ste 800, Miami, FL 33131), the Alzheimer’s Association (225 North Michigan Ave., Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601), or a charity of your choice.

A celebration of Howard’s life will be held Saturday, October 27, 2018, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Olympia Community Center, 222 Columbia St. NW, Room 100, Olympia, WA 98501.There will be a short program at 3:00 p.m.