Gary Arnold Hamacher

Gary Arnold Hamacher, 75, died in his home in Palmer Dec. 26, 2012, surrounded by family and friends.

A gathering in his honor is at his home in Palmer later this spring. A public notice will be published when a date is determined.

He was born Oct. 11, 1937, in Monticello Village, Minn. He moved to Anchorage with his family in 1949 from Becker, Minn. He and wife Joan moved from Anchorage to the Stephan family farm in Palmer in 1999, where he lived until his passing.

Our dad began his long career in construction in Alaska alongside his father, Carl Hamacher, and uncle, Louis Hamacher, constructing many notable structures in Anchorage, his family wrote. He later focused on building custom homes and custom furniture. He was very proud of the work he did repairing Anchorage homes, schools and other public buildings immediately following the 1964 earthquake.

In his spare time, he was a sculptor, painter and master woodworker. His works have graced the Anchorage Museum and are maintained in many fine art collections.

Our dad was a true Alaskan, the family wrote. He loved camping, boating and hunting; however, he was shamelessly devoted to fishing and had many grand adventures with friends and family over the years. He was not shy when it came to sharing secret techniques or spots, (as long as you brought your own tackle). Two of his favorite pastimes were gardening and carefully scrutinizing the “Stokes Seeds Gardening Guide.”

He loved, and was loved by, those who knew him as a father figure and mentor.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army at Fort Ord, Calif., and served with the 813th Engineer Battalion at Fort Richardson from 1958 to 1964, completing his service with the Army Reserve.

Preceding him in death were his wife, Joan Elizabeth Hamacher, nee Stephan; their infant son Steven; and his parents, Carl and Letty Hamacher.

Surviving are his daughter, Leslie Hamacher and her sons Dylan and Devon Yunker, all of Seattle, Wash.; son, Daniel Hamacher, Daniel’s wife Alison and their daughter Lilyanne and son Sebastian, all of Palmer; sisters, Kathleen Tibbles of Spokane, Wash.; and Janet Core of Grass Valley, Calif.; and brothers-in-law Duane Tibbles and Richard Core.

Arrangements were by the Valley Funeral Home and Crematory. An obituary and guestbook are online at AlaskanFuneral.com.