Ralph Edward Zeiba

Ralph Edward Zeiba, 85, of Kent, Washington passed away August 14, 2020.  He was born April 17, 1935 to Edward & Alma Zeiba in Middleboro, MA.  After graduating high school, he served in the Air Force.  He married Joan King Mclean on October 11, 1958 and they were married 45 years until Joan's death in April 2004. Ralph worked for the Mitre Corporation for 25 years.  Ralph and Joan were adventurous and when the opportunity arose, they moved their family of seven across the country to the Seattle, WA area for a temporary, one-year job assignment in 1973. They loved the Pacific Northwest and stayed much longer than the original one-year assignment.  After Seattle, Ralph's job took them to Southern California and eventually back to the home office in Boston, MA. Upon retirement, Ralph and Joan returned to the Seattle area to be close to their children and grandchildren.

Following Joan's death, Ralph joined a grief group where he met Dolores Garbush. They found that they had several similar life events: their spouses had passed away on the same day; they each had five children, but each had lost an adult child. They shared other interests as well, such as enjoyment of music and playing the organ.  Ralph and Dolores were married on March 25, 2006, celebrating 14 happy years together.

Ralph was an avid model railroad hobbyist and also enjoyed cooking, camping, and travel (especially by train).

Ralph is survived by his wife, Dolores Garbush; his children Victoria , Dwight, Julianna and Sara;  grandchildren Lindsay, Breanna, Ashley, April, Jacob  & Violet; great-grandchildren Ivy & Nolan; also, his siblings Joan, Jane, Bruce and Karen and many nieces & nephews.

Besides his wife Joan, Ralph was preceded in death by his son Christian in 1995. 

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