Memorial service for Richard Lawson scheduled for Feb. 6 on San Juan Valley ranch

Richard Lawson's memorial service is scheduled for Feb. 6 at the Lestralaur Ranch on San Juan Valley Road, according to Evans Funeral Chapel in Anacortes.

A full obituary with time of service will be posted Monday and published in the Feb. 3 Journal.

Mr. Lawson, a well-known contractor whose roots on San Juan Island date to 1856, died Jan. 26, 6 a.m., in University of Washington Medical Center. He was 66, his daughter-in-law Leah Lawson said.

Mr. Lawson died of thyroid cancer, she said. She said her father-in-law had beaten thyroid cancer before and had been given a "clean bill of health," but the recurrence was sudden.

Mr. Lawson was a descendant of Peter Lawson, who came to the San Juan Islands from Denmark in 1856; and Fanny (Deardon) Lawson, who arrived in Victoria on a bride’s ship from Manchester, England.

Mr. Lawson owned and operated Richard Lawson Construction since 1971. The company does commercial, industrial and residential work. He also owned a quarry. He served a year on the Friday Harbor Port Commission in the early 1980s.

"He's the last one we'd expect would fall," his cousin, Darby Lawson, said. "He was always so healthy. I still think of him as being 30. I don't think of him as 67."

Mr. Lawson's survivors include his mom, Jeri; sons, Chris, Richard and Tom; brother, Victor; sister, Ruthie Paull; and seven grandchildren.

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