Birth: 5/8/1933

Doyle Dean Hamilton, 78, passed away from lung cancer on December 26, 2011 at home in Olympia, Washington. Doyle was born May 8, 1933 in Martin, South Dakota to Leonard and Juanita Hamilton. He graduated from Seattle’s Garfield High School and from the University of Washington in Pharmacy. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1954 to final discharge as Captain in 1972. He served during the Korean War with the 8th Troup Carrier Squadron.

He was married to Geraldine J. Wright in 1956; she passed away in 1961. He married Joanne (Peerboom) in 1966.

Doyle was head pharmacist with Pay ‘N Save in Aberdeen and Lacey in the 1960s and was head pharmacist with Sea Mart Drug (later Olympic Drug) until 1994. He was a pharmacist at Yauger Park Pharmacy for six months until his retirement, after which he did temporary relief work for several months.

He is survived by his wife, Joanne; son, Michael and his wife Lucinda and their family of Bellingham; and daughter, Lorene and her husband Kurt Swanson and their family of Poulsbo.

Doyle enjoyed traveling with his wife, Joanne, and he was an avid gardener. He was a devoted father and loving husband. He will be sorely missed by family, friends, former co-workers, and those who knew him as their pharmacist.

His family would like to thank the nurses and staff at Providence Sound Home Care and Hospice for their care and assistance.

A funeral mass will be held at 9:00 a.m., Friday, December 30, 2011 at St. Michael Catholic Church, 1055 Boundary St SE, Olympia, WA 98501. Interment with full military honors will follow at Tahoma National Cemetery.

Donations in Doyle’s memory may be made to your favorite charity. Please leave remembrances in the guestbook below.

Looking down from the navigator's chair,
He saw a string of camels crossing slow
Across the arid Sahara desert.
What great leap of faith, he said he wondered,
Guided the caravan in daylight hours
When no star shone, nor rock nor tree appeared.
He, with compasses and hard won wisdom
Sure of his heading mapped out early on.

This would not have been his first encounter
With such puzzles, for his airplane, struck by
Lightning, lost its modern magic guides
Far out over the icy Bering sea,
And only his lucky Boy Scout compass
And his superlative dead reckoning
Brought the airplane safely to its home base.
"Good Luck," he'd said modestly, but shuddered.

He chose pharmacy as his profession,
Dispensing medicines, but also care
As his own prescription for those in need.
"What a nice man," more than one patient said,
And so we teased him with this now and then.
"You're sure a nice man Mr. Pharmacist,"
We'd say, to draw his tolerant chuckle.
"What a nice man"--a fitting epitaph.

A family man who honored his wife,
Laughingly tolerant of children's lapse,
Caretaker of home and spiritual life,
Alert and protective against mishaps.
A gentleman, a man for all seasons,
A man to be treasured for his humor,
Honored for his common sense and reason,
One who never passed a hurtful rumor.

So, Doyle Hamilton.

Always there with an apt and amusing quip,
There's nothing to compare with his friendship.

--written by Jim Browder, a friend for many years and part owner of Olympic Drug

Please leave YOUR memories of Doyle in the Guestbook below.